The Vice-Minister also presented priorities of Lithuania’s chairmanship of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe in 2011 and the activities that the organization intends to carry out in Afghanistan.

The meeting “Partners in Regional Integration” marked the 30th anniversary of the formal EU-ASEAN cooperation. The statement was made that ASEAN countries aimed to take over the experience of the EU regional integration. The EU member states expressed their readiness to help in developing the ASEAN institutions.

The European Union confirmed the intention of joining ASEAN’s Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, which paves the way for an increased EU’s involvement in the East and Southeast Asian security dialogue.

At the event, important issues of Europe and the Southeast Asia were discussed: the situation in Burma/Myanmar, Thailand, Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Middle East, climate change, global economic crisis, issues of traditional and non-traditional security, human rights, Iran and North Korea.

The majority of ministers expressed concern about Burma/Myanmar election laws, which did not allow for free and democratic elections, and about North Korea’s new confrontational statements.

ASEAN is the Southeast Asian regional organization which was formed in 1967. ASEAN joins together 10 countries: Brunei, Burma/Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The EU is ASEAN’s third largest trading partner after the United States and China, and the largest investor in the ASEAN region.

In Madrid, Vice-Minister Š.Adomavičius also met with Malaysia’s Foreign Minister Dato’ Sri Anifah Hj. Aman and discussed possible cooperation with Malaysia in Afghanistan.