Dáil debates

Thursday, 18 November 2021

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions

Foreign Policy

9:50 am

Photo of Thomas ByrneThomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I visited Lithuania on 27-28 October for a number of bilateral engagements. Ireland has a close relationship with Lithuania and I availed of the visit to mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Ireland and Lithuania. A number of issues were discussed during the visit, including the situation on the Lithuanian border with Belarus, the situation in Belarus, the rule of law, EU-UK relations and the Convention on the Future of Europe. I am very grateful for the solidarity of Lithuania and all of our colleague member states.

I had a meeting at the Lithuanian Parliament, The Seimas, with the European Affairs Committee and the Group for Inter-Parliamentary Relations with Ireland, which is very keen to expand its engagement with Irish parliamentarians. I also met my colleague, Vice-Minister of European Affairs, Arnoldas Pranckevičius, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We discussed the issue of migration and the current situation in Belarus, as well as the Eastern Partnership, Brexit and Lithuania’s relationship with China.

I visited the Lithuanian-Belarus border, accompanied by the Vice-Minister for the Interior, Liudvikas Abramavičius, as well as my colleague, Arnoldas Pranckevičius. As part of that visit, we viewed some migrant camps that have been established by the Lithuanian Government and met with the Lithuanian Border Guards and the Lithuanian Red Cross, which this year has received a contribution of €100,000 from Irish Aid. I also met with Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the leader of the Belarusian opposition. A range of issues were discussed and officials in my Department are following up on a number of issues raised with me by Ms Tsikhanouskaya in regard to how Ireland can be of assistance to the Belarusian people.

Along with Vice-Minister Pranckevičius, I took part in a Future of Europe event, which involved engagement from Lithuanian students on the European agenda.

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