Economics, EU – Baltic States, Lithuania

Dalia Grybauskaite.

The President and the Irish leaders are going to discuss Lithuanian-Irish bilateral relations, prospects for the development of economic cooperation, possibilities to create a single EU energy market, other EU-related issues, and preparations for the upcoming shared presidency of the EU.

"Lithuania and Ireland are united by their common interests within the European Union, by the preparedness of the two countries to hold shared presidency of the EU, and by the commitment to promote the EU's economic recovery. We will not emerge successfully from the economic crisis and will not ensure economic recovery in Europe, unless we create a single energy market and develop infrastructure vital for the economic growth", President Dalia Grybauskaite said.

The President is going to visit one of the most prominent schools in the world, the Trinity College in Dublin, which is number thirteen in Europe according to the 2009 global rating of universities. The President will meet with the Rector and other faculty members to discuss the potential for an enhanced academic cooperation with Lithuanian universities. The Trinity College currently maintains close contacts with Kaunas University of Technology. Other Lithuanian higher education schools are also interested in launching partnership programmes and cooperation projects.

While in Dublin, the President will also meet with representatives of the Lithuanian community in Ireland. According to the President, Lithuanian Irish community, with its approximately 90 thousand members, is number three in the world by size, and, being such, it does not only make a growing contribution to Ireland's cultural and public life, but also faces a number of issues of concern such as the possibility to learn in the native language, to come back to study in Lithuanian higher schools, dual citizenship, recognition of marriages, or compulsory health insurance.

Monday evening, the President leaves Ireland for Brussels, to attend the World Economic Forum on Tuesday, May 11, where European leaders are set to discuss measures to implement the European Union's 2020 Strategy and where President Grybauskaitë is going to speak about possibilities to develop nuclear energy.