Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Republic of Lit : Linkevičius discusses intensifying Lithuania-U.S. economic cooperation

On 11 January, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius met with the U.S. Ambassador to Lithuania Anne Hall and the President of the American-Lithuanian Business Council (ALBC) Eric Stewart, and discussed development opportunities for economic relations between Lithuania and the United States of America.

Linkevičius stressed that the United States was not only our strategic partner and ally, but also an important investor, which contributes to job creation and national prosperity. According to the Lithuanian Foreign Minister, the bilateral trade and investment volumes that have been growing over the last few years demonstrate our mutual wish to extend our cooperation. The head of Lithuania's diplomacy thanked the President of the American-Lithuanian Business Council for helping to spread the word about the advantages of Lithuania's investment environment in the U.S.

'The U.S. companies that develop their businesses in Lithuania successfully are advocates of our country, which spread the word about our country's great business opportunities. We are pleased that the cooperation between our countries has especially intensified over the recent years. We hope that you will be able to bring a large U.S. business delegation to Lithuania in March,' said Linkevičius.

Among the ALBC members, there are businesses that have implemented investment projects and developed activities in Lithuania, including the Western Union, AIG, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Philip Morris, Pfizer, etc. The American-Lithuanian Business Council is a Washington, D.C. based organization that promotes commercial ties between Lithuania and the U.S.A. An ABLC business mission is to visit Lithuania this March.

On 30 September 2016, the U.S. direct investments in Lithuania amounted to EUR 223.05 million. In 2015, the Lithuania-U.S. trade turnover amounted to EUR 1.36 billion. Lithuanian exports to the U.S. amounted to EUR 997.8 million, while imports from the U.S. amounted to EUR 358.2 million.

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