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Lithuanian-Polish relations ‘best in several decades’: PM Skvernelis

18.11.2020 00:08
Outgoing Lithuanian Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis has said after talks with visiting Polish President Andrzej Duda that relations between the two countries are “the best in several decades.”
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Lithuanias Saulius Skvernelis and Polands Andrzej Duda in Vilnius on Tuesday.
Lithuania’s Saulius Skvernelis and Poland’s Andrzej Duda in Vilnius on Tuesday. Photo: PAP/Jakub Szymczuk/KPRP

"Lithuania and Poland are stronger when they are together, so we cannot allow our unity to be breached," said Skvernelis, cited in a statement by government officials released on Tuesday.

Skvernelis added: "We should continue to implement strategic infrastructure projects and strengthen joint security in the region based on transatlantic values."

Duda on Tuesday started a two-day visit to Lithuania during which he said that Warsaw and Vilnius would continue to support calls by Belarusians for fair elections.

At a joint press conference with President Gitanas Nauseda, Duda said Poland and Lithuania enjoyed “good neighbourly and friendly” relations, adding that the two countries were “bound by a great common history”.

On Wednesday, the second day of his trip, Duda is scheduled to meet Ingrida Simonyte, who is forming a new government in Vilnius after winning elections last month.

He is then expected to visit a mausoleum in which the heart of Marshal Józef Piłsudski, one of the architects of Polish independence, is buried.

Duda and Nauseda will also launch an online Lithuanian-Polish business forum.

Poland and Lithuania in September signed a strategic partnership declaration and their government ministers held talks officially known as intergovernmental consultations.

It was the first such event between the two countries since 1989.

(pk)

Source: PAP

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