Kubilius: keeping good relations with Russia is one of Lithuania's key priorities

VILNIUS - Lithuanian relations with Russia could improve if we eliminate dependence on Russian energy, Lithuanian Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius said on Jan. 24.

According to him, keeping good neighborly relations is one of Lithuania's key priorities, yet the quality of relation must be a mutual concern, informs LETA/ELTA.

"It is very important to improve our relations more, even though they are not bad as such. If we could see that let's say giant Russian energy companies do not abuse their monopolistic position, then Lithuania and other Baltic States would have better prospects as they would become more independent energy-wise, which would lead to better bilateral relations with Russia. There is always room for improvement and we do our best to achieve it," Kubilius said on the National Radio.

Lithuanian weekly Veidas carried out a poll which showed that over a third of Lithuanian residents (39 percent) think that the country's main foreign affairs goal should be improving relations with Russia.