On 14 August in Odessa, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius held meetings to discuss economic cooperation, including with the Black Sea Ports of Odessa and Ilyichevsk, the implementation of reforms in the Ukrainian regions, as well as possibilities for civil society projects.
In the meeting, the Governor of the Odessa region Mikheil Saakashvili acquainted the Foreign Minister with the implementation of reforms and underlined that the Ukrainian people were well aware of the need for reform.
In the meeting with Saakashvili and the Mayor of Odessa Genadiy Truchanov, Linkevičius said that it was important to coordinate the implementation of reforms by central and regional authorities, and stressed Lithuania’s commitment to continue to support Ukraine in implementing reforms. The officials discussed how Lithuania could broaden the scope of its assistance and share its reform experience.
An informal tripartite meeting of foreign ministers of Lithuania, Ukraine and Belarus – Linkevičius, Pavlo Klimkin ir Vladimir Makey – was held in Odessa. The meeting discussed issues of cooperation in the field of transport, energy and other areas.
In the meeting with representatives of civil society and volunteer organizations, the Foreign Minister welcomed the already existing very strong cooperation. Linkevičius was acquainted with the projects that were being implemented by these organizations, including the ones in Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
Representatives of the organisations thanked the Foreign Minister for Lithuania’s active and constant support for the Ukrainian civil society, expressed their willingness to further cooperate in preparing and implementing projects in various regions of Ukraine.
In the evening, the Foreign Minister met with the Ukrainian young people in the social enterprise community centre Impact Hub in Odessa.
