On 7 July 2013, the Seimas hosted the Meeting of the Presidential Troika (Ireland, Lithuania, Greece and the European Parliament) of the Conference of Parliamentary Committees for Union Affairs of Parliaments of the European Union (COSAC). Participants of the meeting approved the agenda of the Meeting of the Chairpersons of COSAC, to be held on Monday, 8 July 2013, and discussed the draft agenda of the Plenary Meeting of the L COSAC, the Outline of the 20th Bi-annual Report of COSAC as well as appointment of the Permanent Member of the COSAC Secretariat for 2014-2015.

In his welcome address, the Chairman of the Meeting, Gediminas Kirkilas, Deputy Speaker of the Seimas and Chair of the Committee on European Affairs, thanked Ireland and notably Dominic Hannigan, Chairman of the Joint Committee on European Union Affairs of the Irish Parliament, for the successful Irish Presidency of the Council of the EU.

Mr Kirkilas expressed gratitude for the substantive and well-organised parliamentary meetings in Ireland during its Presidency. “Your dedication and commitment to the cause of creating a better Europe have been inspiring. I can assure you that the progress made over the last six months will not be allowed to slip away and will be further enhanced over the next six months to come,” he said.

The Plenary Meeting of the L COSAC, to be held in Vilnius on 27–29 October 2013, should give particular focus to the upcoming 2014 elections to the European Parliament, implementation of the Europe 2020 strategy, democratic legitimacy of the EU and the role of national Parliaments, as well as the digital agenda, including cyber security and prospects for businesses.

Morta Vidūnaitė, Adviser to Gediminas Kirkilas, Deputy Speaker of the Seimas, tel. +370 5 239 6278, mob. +370 612 01121, e-mail: [email protected]