Press release, 8 September 2016
Photo of the Archive of the Office of the Seimas
At the 26th Economic Forum held in Krynica Zdrój, Poland, Loreta Graužinienė, Speaker of the Seimas, noted the need to deepen regional integration between the Baltic States and Central Europe through joint strategic infrastructure projects, thereby ensuring economic and energy security of our countries.
In taking the floor in the Plenary Session titled What Kind of Solidarity Does Europe Need?, the Speaker of the Seimas pointed out that in order to further strengthen the integration between the Baltic and Central European regions, it was essential to continue developing strategic transport and energy infrastructure projects between Lithuania and Poland and to move towards synchronisation of the Baltic power grids with the continental European network.
The Speaker of the Seimas was convinced that joint Lithuanian and Polish energy projects had to be considered not merely in terms of economic rationality but, above all, in terms of economic and energy security. “Support from EU Member States and in particular from Poland is necessary for the successful implementation of those projects,” the Speaker of the Seimas noted.
Mrs Graužinienė also pointed out that the Baltic region remained poorly integrated into the transport networks of Western Europe. “A well developed and smoothly functioning transport infrastructure is a fundamental prerequisite not only for ensuring the competitiveness of regional economies but also for safeguarding security,” Mrs Graužinienė said.
In her address at the Economic Forum, the Speaker of the Seimas also pointed out to the need for EU Member States to respond to new threats in solidarity and to enhance the dialogue between EU Member States in order to effectively meet new challenges facing the European Union.
The Speaker of the Seimas also had a bilateral meeting with Marek Kuchciński, Marshal of the Polish Sejm, during which they addressed relevant bilateral matters, enhanced regional security, the Eastern Partnership, and the European agenda.
The Economic Forum in Krynica Zdrój, Poland, was held on 7–8 September 2016. Traditionally, the event brings together leaders, politicians, entrepreneurs, academia and non-governmental organisations from Central, Eastern and Western Europe, Asia, and America. The Economic Forum, the origins of which date back to 1992 and which is commonly referred to as the little Davos of Central and Eastern Europe, has become one of the most important and the most attractive economic events in Europe for the political and business elite. The goal of the Forum is to facilitate an environment which is conducive for the development of political and economic cooperation of EU Member States and neighbouring countries. Currently, the Economic Forum in Krynica is the most important economic conference in Central and Eastern Europe.
Neringa Mikėnaitė, Adviser to the Speaker of the Seimas, tel.: +370 5 239 6344, mob. +370 698 42759, +370 655 15 813, e-mail: [email protected]
