Lithuanian FM Pushing For Swift Progress On Ukraine's EU Accession

(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 10. On June 9, during a working visit to Kyiv, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, Kęstutis Budrys, met with Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, Olha Stefanishyna, Trend reports with reference to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania.

The two leaders chewed the fat about Ukraine's EU accession process, the upcoming NATO summit in The Hague, and keeping the ball rolling on international support for Ukraine.

Budrys drove home the point that speeding up Ukraine's journey to full European Union membership is of the utmost importance.

"Our ambition is for the first negotiating clusters with Ukraine to be opened this month by the Polish Presidency of the Council of the EU,” he said.

“We consistently raise the issue of the merit-based principle being applied equally to all EU candidates. The selective blocking of Ukraine's membership and manipulation of the enlargement process is unacceptable."

The Lithuanian minister underlined that Ukraine's EU membership is not only essential for Ukraine, but also serves the strategic interests of the European Union.

“It is necessary to find solutions to speed up Ukraine's European integration. EU membership will also function as a future security guarantee,” Budrys noted.

He added that Ukraine's EU membership by 2030 should become a shared strategic goal.

"Ukraine is showing real political will and determination by implementing the reforms and recommendations laid out by the European Commission. Lithuania remains committed to supporting Ukraine in its EU accession journey,” he assured.

Budrys and Stefanishyna also reviewed the progress of the “Ukraine2EU” support program, which Lithuania has been implementing jointly with Denmark and Sweden. The program is designed to assist Ukraine in meeting EU accession criteria.

The two officials engaged in strategic alignment in anticipation of the forthcoming NATO summit in The Hague, underscoring mutual objectives concerning Ukraine's security architecture, resilience frameworks, and enhanced Euro-Atlantic integration initiatives.

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