In a meeting with the President of the Eurogroup, G. Skaistė: "Additional European decisions are required to strengthen defence capabilities"

In today's meeting of Minister of Finance Gintarė Skaistė and President of the Eurogroup (EG) Paschal Donohoe in Vilnius, the necessary steps at the European Union (EU) level to strengthen defence capabilities, support for Ukraine, economic situation of Lithuania and the euro area, fiscal policy and capital market issues were discussed.

"With the President of the EG, we discussed possible further steps in strengthening defence capabilities at the EU level, which would complement the funds allocated to national defence at the national level. We are open to a discussion on a new EU financial instrument, the funds of which would be channelled to the development of the defence industry in all EU Member States. We also believe that there is room to better utilize the capacities of the European Investment Bank by directing the institution's resources to the defence industry and dual-purpose projects," emphasized Minister of Finance G. Skaistė.

At the meeting, G. Skaistė and P. Donohoe also discussed further EU support for Ukraine. The first EUR 4.5 billion payment of EUR 50 billion EU financial support instrument to the country was disbursed this month. The Minister emphasized the need to ensure further sufficient and predictable financial support for the defending country.

In addition, according to the Minister, when mobilizing funds for Ukraine's needs, we must seriously consider all alternatives, including the use of frozen russian assets. The first steps in this direction have already been taken at the EU level, but we must pursue the fundamental goal of finding legal ways to transfer the frozen assets to Ukraine, coordinating decisions with international partners.

P. Donohoe and the Minister also discussed the economic prospects of Lithuania and the euro area, the coordination of the EU's fiscal policy and the further development direction of the capital markets.

Last updated: 18-04-2024

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