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Statement by the Baltic States Presidents on the Co-ordination of Actions for Promoting Relations with the European Union, NATO and other international structures, and for Strengthening Stability in Europe // Official Gazette Valstybës ţinios, 8 April 1994, No 26
International Agreements between Lithuania and NATOSecurity Agreement between the Republic of Lithuania and North Atlantic Treaty Organisation
Brussels: 13 June 1994
Entered into force: 13 June 1994Agreement among the States Parties to the North Atlantic Treaty and other States Participating in the Partnership for Peace regarding the Status of their Forces, Additional Protocol to the Agreement.
Brussels: 31 January 1996
Entered into force: 14 September 1996
Ratified: 14 May 1996
Published: Official Gazette Valstybës ţinios, 1996, No 116.Agreement among the States Parties to the North Atlantic Treaty and other States Participating in the Partnership for Peace regarding the Status of their Forces, Further Additional Protocol to the Agreement.
Ratified: 13 April 2000 (No VIII/1622)
Published: Official Gazette Valstybës ţinios, 2000, No 48.
RELATIONS BETWEEN LITHUANIA AND NATO
11 February 1991, NATO member country Iceland officially recognised Lithuania as an independent state.
20 December 1991, the founding meeting of the North Atlantic Co-operation (NACC) Council attended by 16 NATO member countries, six former Warsaw Pact countries and three Baltic States.
12 – 13 March 1992, Mr Manfred Wörner, NATO Secretary General, visited the Baltic States for the first time.
10 April 1992, the NATO Military Committee met, for the first time, with the Supreme Commanders of the Army and Chiefs of Staff of Central and Eastern European countries during the session of the North Atlantic Co-operation Council.
13 – 16 October 1992, Gen. Vigleik Eide (Norway), Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, visited Lithuania.
9 February 1993, Gen. Garry Johnson (United Kingdom), Commander, Allied Forces Northern Europe (AFNORTH), visited Lithuania.
24 June 1993, the Delegation of the NATO Political Committee visited Lithuania.
23 December 1993, the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania passed the Resolution recommending the Government to submit an official application for Lithuania’s membership of NATO and to develop the corresponding foreign policy concept.
4 January 1994, Mr Algirdas Mykolas Brazauskas, President of the Republic of Lithuania, sent an official application Mr Manfred Wörner, NATO Secretary General, asking to accept Lithuania as a member of NATO.
27 January 1994, Mr Algirdas Mykolas Brazauskas, President of the Republic of Lithuania, signed the Partnership for Peace Framework Document during his official visit in NATO Headquarters.
3 February 1994, the Government of the Republic of Lithuania passed the Resolution to set up a working group to develop the Partnership for Peace Program.
25 March 1994, the Presidents of the Baltic States issued the Statement on the Co-ordination of Actions for Promoting Relations with the European Union, NATO and other international structures, and for Strengthening Stability in Europe.
11 March 1994, Lithuania signed the Military Co-operation Agreement with NATO member Denmark. It was the first agreement of this type signed with a NATO member country.
11 May 1994, Lithuania signed the Military Co-operation Agreement with NATO member France.
1 September 1994, Lithuania signed the Military Co-operation Agreement with NATO member Germany.
5 October 1994, Lithuania signed the Memorandum on Military Co-operation with NATO member the United Kingdom.
23 November 1994, the Government approved the Individual Partnership Program of Lithuania.
30 November 1994, Mr Albinas Januđka, Secretary of the Lithuanian Foreign Ministry, and Mr Willy Claes (Belgium), NATO Secretary General, officially endorsed the Individual Partnership Program of Lithuania in Brussels.
2 May 1995, the Planning and Review Process document on Lithuania was adopted during the joint meeting of the NATO Political Military Committee and the Lithuanian representatives.
8 August 1995, Lithuania signed the Military Co-operation Agreement with NATO member Norway.
20 September 1995, Lithuania signed the Military Co-operation Agreement with NATO member Turkey.
19 February 1996, soldiers of the Lithuanian peace support platoon – LITPLA – participated within the Danish Battalion in the NATO-led peacekeeping mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
28 March 1996, a new Individual Partnership Program of Lithuania for 1996 to 1998 was adopted during the meeting between NATO and Lithuanian official delegation in Brussels.
1 April 1996, Comm. Eugenijus Nazelskis was appointed military liaison officer of Lithuania for relations with NATO.
16 – 17 April 1996, Mr Javier Solana, NATO Secretary General visited Lithuania.
17 April 1996, Lieut. Normundas Valteris, LITPLA – 4, was killed by a mine explosion in Bosnia.
10 May 1996, Lithuania and NATO finished the round of consultations on the prospects of NATO enlargement in Brussels.
25 June 1996, Mr Bill Clinton, President of the United States, met with the Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian Presidents in Washington.
6 September 1996, the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania passed the Resolution on NATO Enlargement.
1 October 1996, Lithuania signed the Memorandum on Military Co-operation with NATO member the Netherlands.
28 March 1997, the US Congress Delegation confirmed in Vilnius that the NATO doors would not be shut to the Baltic States after the first round of enlargement.
9 April 1997, Mr Vytautas Landsbergis, Chairman of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania, visited the United States. During this visit, Mr All Gore, Vice President of the United States, and Ms Madeleine Albright, United States Secretary of State, as well as US Members of Congress confirmed that Lithuania would not become part of the “grey zone” if it was not accepted to NATO in the first round of enlargement.
9 – 27 April 1997, the bilateral military exercise of Lithuania and US “Amber Valley” took place in Lithuania.
24 April 1997, the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania adopted the Appeal to the NATO Parliaments and North Atlantic Council to invite the Baltic States, or at least one of them, to the Alliance accession negotiations in the first round of enlargement.
24 June 1997, consultation concerning the US and Baltic Co-operation Charter started in Vilnius.
13 July 1997, Ms Madeleine Albright, United States Secretary of State stated in Vilnius that the Baltic States were serious candidates for accession to NATO.
22 – 25 July 1997, Gen. Klaus Naumann (Germany), Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, visited the Baltic States.
7 August 1997, Lithuania signed the Memorandum on Military Co-operation with NATO member Canada.
9 October 1997, Mr Linas Linkevičius was appointed Ambassador of Lithuania to NATO.
16 January 1998, the Presidents of the USA and the three Baltic States signed the US – Baltic Co-operation Charter in Washington.
2 April 1998, the President of Poland, Mr Aleksander Kwasniewski declared to the President of Lithuania, Mr Valdas Adamkus that Poland would strongly support Lithuania’s accession to NATO.
26 May 1998, the NATO Parliamentary Assembly session in Barcelona decided to hold the spring session 2001 in Vilnius.
17 – 18 June 1998, Mr Javier Solana, NATO Secretary General, visited Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia and confirmed that the NATO doors remained open to the Baltic States.
22 –23 October 1998, the President of the Republic of Lithuania, Mr Valdas Adamkus met with the President of the United States, Mr Bill Clinton in Washington.
16 – 19 November 1998, Mr Zbigniew Brzezinski, American polical analyst, former National Security Advisor to the President of the United States, visited Lithuania.
17 –18 November 1998, delegation of the United States Senators headed by Mr William Roth, President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, visited Lithuania.
4 December 1998, Commanders of Allied Forces Northern Europe and Allied Forces Central Europe visited Lithuania and discussed the reform of the NATO Headquarters.
14 January 1999, the Lithuanian Parliament passed the Law on the National Defence Budget Strategy, which provided for a gradual increase of the defence budget to reach the 2 per cent of GDP level by the year 2001.
13 – 15 April 1999, the President of Poland, Mr Aleksander Kwasnieski stated during his visit to Lithuania that, after joining NATO, Poland would become Lithuania’s advocate inside the Alliance and would support Lithuania’s accession to NATO.
21 April 1999, the Washington-based Foreign Relations Institute published a Study on the US Policy in North East Europe, where it recommended to invite the best prepared Baltic state – Lithuania – to the next NATO enlargement round. The Lithuanian Government established a Governmental Co-ordinating Commission for Lithuania’s Integration into NATO and assigned the Foreign Minister with its chairmanship
23 April 1999, the Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian Presidents met with Ms Madeleine Albright, United States Secretary of State, in Washington and invited to open NATO doors for the Baltic States.
24 – 25 May 1999, Ms Isabel Nobre, expert of the NATO Office of Security, visited Lithuania.
123 June 1999, the Lithuanian President attended the 16th International NATO Seminar on Political and Military Decision-Making held in Budapest.
28 July 1999, Gen. Wesley Clark, NATO Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, visited Lithuania.
27 August 1999, the Special Committee of the Foreign Ministry and National Defence Ministry approved the National NATO Integration Program of Lithuania.
1 September 1999, the Lithuanian Government approved the Lithuanian NNIP. Some of it goals were incorporated into the Implementation Plan for the 1999-2000 Lithuanian Government Program.
8 September 1999, the Lithuanian NNIP was submitted to Mr Klaus Peter Klaiber, Assistant NATO Secretary General.
10 – 12 September 1999, Mr Javier Ruperez, President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, and Mr Simon Lunn, Secretary General visited Lithuania.
17 September 1999, Mr R. Smith, Deputy Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, visited Lithuania.
21 October 1999, Maj. Gen. J. Garret, Director on NATO and European policy issues, US Defence Department, visited Lithuania.
15 – 17 November 1999, Maj. Gen. Renauld D’Astorg, Deputy Director of the Co-operation and Regional Security Division of the International Military Staff of NATO, visited Lithuania.
24 January 2000, the security policy consultations between the Foreign Ministries of Lithuania and France took place in Paris.
31 January 2000, Air Chief Marshal Sir John Cheshire, Commander-in-Chief, Allied Forces North Western Europe, visited Lithuania.
29 February – 1 March 2000, Mr Christopher Donnelly, NATO Secretary General Special Advisor for Central and Eastern Europe, visited Lithuania.
29 – 30 March 2000, Mr Andrius Kubilius, Prime Minister of the Republic of Lithuania, attended the North Atlantic Council meeting (in the MAP context). He met with Lord George Robertson, NATO Secretary General, and Mr Javier Solana, Secretary General of the Council of the EU / High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy. The Lithuanian MAP evaluation was presented during this meeting.
18 – 19 May 2000, the Lithuanian and Slovenian Governments, together with the Lithuanian and Slovenian Atlantic Treaty Associations, invited representatives of NATO and EU members and partners as well as representatives of the NATO Headquarters (International Staff), EU and WEU Secretariats and NGO’s to the Conference on the NATO’s Role in the Changing Security Environment in Europe. The Conference was welcomed by Lord Robertson, NATO Secretary General
19 May 2000, the Foreign Ministers of Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia, and Foreign Vice-Ministers of Albania and Macedonia, adopted the Vilnius Statement. There they expressed their solidarity and reiterated their commitment to work together with European countries, United States of America and Canada in creating united and free Europe that would ensure stability and security in the 21st century.
28 – 30 May 2000, NATO experts on crisis management visited Lithuania (in the MAP context).
13 – 15 June 2000, Dr. Robert Kennedy, Director of the Marshall Centre, visited Lithuania.
21 – 23 June 2000, the delegation of the Political Sub-Committee on Central and Eastern Europe of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly visited Lithuania.
27 – 29 June 2000, Mr Baldwin De Vidts, Legal Advisor to NATO Secretary General, visited Lithuania (in the MAP context). Consultations took place regarding the Lithuanian legislation related to engagement in collective defence.
30 June – 1 July 2000, Admiral Dvido Venturoni, Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, visited Lithuania.
6 – 10 September 2000, members of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly visited Lithuania.
11 October 2000, the Lithuanian Government approved the new National NATO Integration Program (NNIP) for 2000/2001 (MAP context).
31 October 2000, Mr Giedrius Čekuolis, Director of the Bilateral Relations Department, Lithuanian Foreign Ministry, presented the Lithuanian NNIP 2000/2001 to the NATO Senior Political Committee (Reinforced).
17 November 2000, by presidential decree, Mr Giedrius Čekuolis was appointed Chief Co-ordinator of Lithuania’s Integration into NATO.
22 November 2000, Mr Antanas Valionis, Lithuanian Foreign Minister, met with Lord George Robertson, NATO Secretary General, in Brussels. Lithuania’s preparations for its membership of NATO were discussed during the meeting.
20 – 23 November 2000, NATO NOS officers visited Lithuania. NATO security officers became familiar with the practical preparations of the Lithuanian institutions in the area of data protection and physical security.
15 – 16 December 2000, Mr Antanas Valionis, Lithuanian Foreign Minister, attended the Euro Atlantic Partnership meeting of foreign ministers in Brussels. The foreign ministers of nine NATO aspirant countries met and adopted a joint declaration. The foreign ministers of nine NATO aspirant countries also met with Ms Madeleine Albright, United States Secretary of State, and the Foreign Ministers of the Czech Republic, Poland and Hungary.
25 January 2001, by presidential decree, Ms Gintë Damuđis was appointed Ambassador of Lithuania to NATO and the WEU.
30 January 2001, Ms Gintë Damuđis, Ambassador of Lithuania to NATO and the WEU, presented the credentials to Lord George Robertson, NATO Secretary General.
31 January 2001, during his visit to Brussels, Mr Rolandas Paksas, Prime Minister of Lithuania, met with Lord George Robertson, NATO Secretary General. NATO enlargement and Lithuania’s preparation were discussed during the meeting.
31 January – 2 February 2001, NATO representatives visited Lithuania to assess its preparations for the NATO membership vis-a-vis its commitments under the NNIP 2000/2001.
Cf. E. Sinkevičius // NATO Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow: Collective Monograph (NATO vakar, điandien ir rytoj. Kolektyvinë monografija)/ Co-authors: Raimundas Lopata and Gediminas Vitkus. Vilnius: Eugrimas, 1999 – 253 p.
The NATO Commission of the Seimas was set up by Seimas Resolution No VIII-1272 of 29 June 1999. Seimas Resolution No VIII-1393 of 4 November 1999 approved its Rules of Procedure, which provided for the following key objectives of the Commission:
- To ensure co-ordination of the work by Seimas Committees and Seimas Delegations to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly and to the WEU with regard to the NATO integration matters;
- To reinforce the parliamentary control over the NATO integration;
- To broaden the awareness of the population on issues of national security, defence and NATO integration;
- To initiate and to draft laws and amendments aimed at regulating the legal issues related to national security, defence and NATO integration;
- To monitor implementation of the Law on the Fundamentals of the National Security and the annual resolutions of the Seimas on the situation of the national security system as well as the enlargement reports;
- To develop and strengthen parliamentary relations with the parliaments of the NATO member countries and aspirant countries.
The Commission has non-staff consultant Mr Eitvydas Bajarűnas, tel. +3702 618 552, fax: +3702 620 752. Information on organisational matters is also provided by the Secretariat of the Seimas Commissions, tel. +3702 396 823, Room 115, Building 3.