Lithuanian EU Presidency to Show the Way for Estonia, Says MP
Arto Aas, who chairs the Parliament's European Union Affairs Committee said that Estonia will have much to learn from Lithuania, as the southernmost Baltic nation begins its six-month term chairing the Council of the European Union.
“If we were to look at the priorities the Lithuanian government has highlighted for its presidency, we would find them interesting and useful for Estonia,” Aas said, speaking on ERR radio today.
Lithuania had prioritized energy security, the Eastern Partnership project involving Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, said Aas, adding increasing EU's competitiveness and strategy for the Baltic Sea to Lithuania's list.
“All these topics are very important to Estonians. Taking into consideration that we share common interests we wish to protect, it should be a very useful and interesting six months,” Aas said.
On July 1, Lithuania began its six-month presidency of the Council of the European Union, also known as the Council of Ministers, the one of two legislative bodies of the union. It is the first rotation by a Baltic state.
Latvia takes over from Italy at the beginning of 2015, with Estonia's term penciled in for the first half of 2018.