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Dear Friends,

It is my pleasure to open today this discussion on “The Baltic Sea Region in the European Union”. It is timely to re-evaluate the political and economic developments of our region; its role, perspectives and challenges in the broader European perspective, including the assessment of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region.

My special word of welcome goes to our special guests - Prof. Dr. Bernd Henningsen from Humboldt University and Dr. Tobias Etzold from the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, editors of a “Political State of the Region Report” for the year 2011. I also welcome one of the authors of this Report – Dr. Mindaugas Jurkynas – who is moderating today’s discussion.

Today you will get a comprehensive outline of the political state of our region and an evaluation of the EU Baltic Sea Region Strategy impact to Lithuania. Let me share with you some of my thoughts regarding the Baltic Sea region.

It has been widely acknowledged that the Baltic Sea Region today is one of the most integrated and dynamically developing regions in Europe, which demonstrated considerable economic stability even in the times of the recent economic and financial challenges. This year is special for us in the region, because Lithuania coordinates Nordic-Baltic cooperation agenda; the agenda of the fifth biggest economy in the EU and eighth in the world.

Twenty years ago, when the first organization of regional cooperation - the Council of the Baltic Sea States – was established, the networking in the region has made a tremendous progress, thanks not only to the political will of the constituting states but also to the wide engagement of its people, who gradually started seeing themselves as one big community, committed to and responsible for the sustainable development of the Baltic Sea Region. In this respect, let me commend the current Presidency of the CBSS - Germany, for the successful chairmanship, interesting and innovative priorities, well-organized celebration of the 20th anniversary of the organization and fruitful ministerial meeting. We are looking forward to the next important event - the Baltic Sea Days which will take place in Berlin in April this year.

The special value of the Baltic Sea regional cooperation was once again acknowledged a decade later, when the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region was endorsed by the European Council in 2009. This is the first macro-regional strategy of the EU, aimed not only at the more intense integration and development of the Baltic Sea region, tackling common challenges in a more effective way, but also at making this regional approach a model for other EU regions to find inspiration in. Accomplishing the role of the first EU macro-region is a sign of acknowledgment of our potential, but also it means a huge responsibility, to prove that such a new method of European regional cooperation is viable.

When we have a strong political will, way forward and more or less appropriate financial mechanisms in place, we have to be sure as to what goals should be our main priority. My belief is that in order to respond effectively to the challenges ahead – which are sustainable environment, enhanced prosperity, improved accessibility and increased safety and security - our primary target should be deeper regional integration and better coordination of regional efforts on all levels.

I shall limit myself to energy issues, accessibility, prosperity and cooperation with third countries.

We are especially glad to note that due to coordinated actions by participating states the Baltic Sea region is becoming a hub of energy initiatives. Today we can focus on particular projects aiming to create a common EU energy market by 2014 and to eliminate remaining energy islands by 2015. Baltic Energy Interconnection Plan (BEMIP) is a very good example that cooperation between EU member states in the field of energy is highly effective. A number of strategic projects – regional Nuclear Power Plant in Visaginas, electricity interconnections with Sweden and Poland, LNG terminal, synchronous interconnection with European Continental Electricity Networks and others – are being implemented in a timely manner. The implementation of these projects will allow us to increase the reliability of energy supply and to enhance healthy competition in the field of energy.

As for the better accessibility to the region and within the region, the sea has always been one of the main roads connecting our people and nations. The sea traffic in the Baltic Sea will inevitably grow, and we are looking forward for the new corridors to be formed, but this has to be done extremely carefully, without any harm to the ecosystem of the sea. Special attention has to be paid to such issues as joining efforts in oil spill prevention, as at any given moment some 20 thousand tankers are crossing the sea, especially on North-South sea route. Also, intensity of personal contacts has changed, and new possibilities are appearing, thanks to modern technologies and approaches. It is important to use them in a secure and well managed environment and in such a way, so that they join and not separate people who live around the sea, and help to foster human values and open societies, that is societies which are open to modern ideas and thinking.

To foster regional prosperity we must develop innovative ideas to enable businesses in the region to compete within and outside the region, producing high-value added products. We should pay more attention not only to the development of scientific potential, but also to the development of the infrastructure and adequate legal environment supporting it, as well as to the improvement of human resources and skills. In this context, it is also important to promote cooperation between companies, research institutes, and universities, using various national and international instruments. It would help the Baltic Sea Region to maintain dynamic economies, to strengthen their competitiveness, and to ensure the harmonious development of the region.

Although the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region is mainly designed for the EU Member States around the Baltic Sea, we do agree, that some issues are of cross-bordering nature, for example environmental or cultural heritage ones. The dialog with the third countries is essential to respond to common challenges and we encourage such a dialog using primarily the framework of Northern Dimension and CBSS, when appropriate.

In the Programme of the Government of the Republic of Lithuania, the Baltic Sea cooperation is established as one of our main priorities. This has been reflected in our EU policy agenda and in our strong commitment to the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea region. We commend Poland’s efforts to accelerate the implementation of the Strategy during their presidency last autumn, we strongly support the priorities in this field of current EU presidency – Denmark - and we are preparing to take over the lead during our presidency next year, as the effective implementation of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea region will be one of our chairmanship priorities.

I hope this seminar will be useful in our preparations. I wish all of us good and insightful discussion.

Thank you.