Lithuania joined the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe and became a member of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA) in 1991. Delegations to the OSCE PA representing the Seimas have been formed ever since.

With time and experience, delegations of the Seimas grew to be increasingly active and visible. A number of Members of the Seimas Delegations have been appointed committee rapporteurs, but the highest position ever reached by a Seimas representative so far is Vice President of the OSCE PA. During the 2013 summer session in Istanbul, Vilija Aleknaitė-Abramikienė, the then Head of the Seimas Delegation to the OSCE PA, was elected as a Vice President of the OSCE PA for a three-year term. In 2016, she was re-elected for the second term.

From left to right: Press conference of Spenser Oliver, OSCE PA Secretary-General; Joao Soares, OSCE PA President; Klas Bergman, Director for Communications, International Secretariat, OSCE PA.

Photo credit: Office of the Seimas, 29 June 2009

OSCE PA Plenary Session. At the top, at the rostrum: Joao Soares, President of the OSCE PA; from left to right in the second row: Prof. Vytautas Landsbergis, President of the Supreme Council-Reconstituent Seimas and the then Member of the European Parliament; Andrius Kubilius, Prime Minister; Arūnas Valinskas, Speaker of the Seimas; Valdas Adamkus, President of the Republic of Lithuania; and Spenser Oliver, Secretary General of the OSCE PA. 

Photo credit: Office of the Seimas, 29 June 2009

Meeting between the Seimas Delegation to the OSCE PA and the Committee on European Affairs, on the one part, and Lamberto Zannier, OSCE Secretary General, and Michael Georg Link, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHT), on the other. From left to right: Gediminas Kirkilas, Chair of the Seimas Committee on European Affairs; Algirdas Sysas, Head of the Seimas Delegation to the OSCE PA; Vilija Aleknaitė-Abramikienė, member of the Delegation; Lamberto Zannier, OSCE Secretary General; and Michael Georg Link, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHT).

Photo by Olga Posaškova, Office of the Seimas, 20 April 2015

Throughout Lithuania’s membership of the OSCE PA, Lithuanian representatives have submitted numerous amendments to the resolutions under consideration, initiated and presented a Draft Resolution on Divided Europe Reunited: promoting human rights and civil liberties in the OSCE region in the 21st century, condemning the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, as well as resolutions on energy security, nuclear security, environmental protection, and war propaganda and incitement to hatred. The Seimas Delegations clearly expressed their support at all times for Georgia in the face of Russian aggression, and now are most active in expressing support to Ukraine.

In Vilnius, an annual session of the OSCE PA was held in 2009, followed by the OSCE PA Bureau Meeting in 2010. In addition, meetings of the OSCE PA NB8 Group (Nordic-Baltic) were held several times in Vilnius.

During the 2016–2020 legislative period of the Seimas, Virginijus Sinkevičius was appointed Head of the Delegation, with Rūta Miliūtė and Laurynas Kasčiūnas as members and Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen and Artūras Skardžius as alternate members of the Delegation. Following the appointment of Mr Sinkevičius as Minister of Economy and Innovation, Ms Miliūtė became Head of the Delegation.

Press conference of the Seimas Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE PA), 10 July 2017. Photo by Džoja Gunda Barysaitė, Office of the Seimas

The Delegation played an active role in the work of the OSCE PA. Mr Kasčiūnas was elected Deputy Chair of the Ad Hoc Committee on Migration. Moreover, he was elected a rapporteur for a three-year term for the Committee on Political Issues and Security at the OSCE PA annual session in Luxembourg in 2019. Among other activities, the Delegation initiated and submitted resolutions on energy and nuclear security, human rights in Belarus, and fight against propaganda and incitement to hatred.

Funding. The OSCE PA budget consists of contributions from national Parliaments determined and distributed among the participating States based on the OSCE’s expenditure incurred. The OSCE PA financial year is calculated from 1 October to 30 September. Lithuania’s annual contribution for the financial year 2019–2020 amounted to EUR 6.885,00. The contribution fluctuates year on year in view of the living standards, inflation and other indicators set by the OSCE Ministerial Council.

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On 8 December 2020, during the 2020–2024 legislative period, the Seimas, acting in accordance with Article 81(1) of the Statute, formed 10 parliamentary delegations, including the Delegation of the Seimas to the OSCE PA. The latter Delegation consists of three members and two alternate members. The Seimas confirmed Ms Aleknaitė-Abramikienė as Head of the Delegation to the OSCE PA and Ms Miliūtė as her Deputy.