BICOM

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in Lithuania yesterday to meet with Baltic leaders and deepen Israel’s diplomatic relations in Eastern Europe.

Netanyahu, who has Lithuanian roots, was greeted by Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicious as he began his visit, the first-ever by an Israeli Prime Minister to the country.

He praised Lithuanian Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis, for his “strong stand” in support of Israel in EU institutions. He said it was refreshing to see Skvernelis stand for “clarity, truth and courage” and was looking forward to discussing ways to expand support for Israel in the EU.

Netanyahu will attend a summit of the Baltic States and meet with Skvernelis, Latvian Prime Minister Maris Kucinskis and Estonian Prime Minister Jüri Ratas. Netanyahu said that he intended to counterbalance Brussels’ “unfriendly approach to Israel” through direct contact with Eastern European and Baltic leaders.

The Israeli Prime Minister is also hoping to persuade European countries to exert more pressure on Iran after the US pulled out of the JCPOA nuclear deal and re-imposed sanctions.

Netanyahu is scheduled to attend a memorial ceremony at Ponar, where 141,000 Jews were killed during the Holocaust. He will meet Jewish community leaders in the Vilnius’ Choral Synagogue, the only in the city to survive the Holocaust. Netanyahu said this element of the trip is a reminder of “the abyss of the tragedy of the Holocaust.”

Israel and Lithuania have recently strengthened trade and diplomatic ties. Lithuania is a major buyer of Israeli defence and military products and has spoken of expanding its cyber-security sector, where Israel is a market leader. In December 2017 Lithuania unilaterally invited Netanyahu to visit the EU headquarters in Brussels as part of an informal breakfast with European foreign ministers.