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On 24 September, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius took part in the leading annual transatlantic security conference in Washington, D.C. - the CEPA Forum - and discussed cooperation between the countries of Europe and North America in response to common security challenges.

"The key message Lithuania wants to send is that transatlantic unity remains essential in addressing the emerging security challenges. Although the importance of the transatlantic unity is nothing of a new, it is, however, always important to remember why NATO and the EU were created, and what values unite the transatlantic family," said L. Linkevičius.

The head of Lithuania’s diplomacy emphasized that in order to secure a safe and united Europe it was necessary to maintain NATO’s strength and solidarity. Active U.S. involvement in Europe's security is also very important.

At the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) in Washington, D.C., L. Linkevičius participated in a discussion about the EU-NATO cooperation in strengthening European defense, NATO's deterrence efforts, and collective defense in the context of current threats.

"The EU and NATO's should not duplicate or compete in the defence policies. Cooperation and coordination are essential to our success; and we should aim to fill the existing gap in the defense field, " said the Minister.

The Senior Vice President at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) Edward Lucas moderated the discussion that was also attended by Romania's Vice Prime Minister Ana Birchall, Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs Jacek Czaputowicz, and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic Miroslav Lajčák.

After the panel discussion Lithuanian and Polish Foreign Ministers and CEPA's Vice President Edward Lucas reiterated their call on Russia to free Ukrainian film maker Oleg Sentsov who has been unlawfully held in a prison in Russia.