Today, the greatest challenge for civilized countries is to remain a strong transatlantic community, and the new Nordic-Baltic brand, liaising NATO and the European Union, may become attractive to other countries.

This idea was emphasized by Linas Linkevičius, Ambassador of Lithuania to Sweden, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Lithuania (2012-20), at the 17 th Annual Kyiv Security Forum “UA: UNITE AGAIN TO DEFEAT THE GLOBAL AGGRESSOR”, organized by the Arseniy Yatsenyuk Foundation “Open Ukraine”.

“There is nothing particularly surprising here… Three years ago, a declaration on comprehensive partnership was signed… today it remains just a statement, and not yet signed agreement,” he said, commenting a declaration signing between Russia and China.

According to him, this is about stability, as China is Russia’s number one trading partner, although from the Chinese perspective Russia is “hardly a Number Ten partner”.

“China will equilibrate its interests in supporting Russia to prevent its defeat, and on the other hand ensure its own interests,” Ambassador Linkevičius stressed.

The Ambassador also noted that there is nothing new here – China’s priorities are and remain its own interests. According to Ambassador, the Euro-Atlantic community needs to try to overcome current problems by acting in unison. “Now, the greatest challenge for us is to remain a powerful transatlantic community,” he added.

Describing security situation in the region, the Ambassador argued: “We have a new brand - the Nordic-Baltic Alliance binding NATO and the European Union together like glue... This can become an attractive option for many others.” The

Kyiv Security Forum, organized by the Arseniy Yatsenyuk “Open Ukraine” foundation, is the main platform in this country to discuss problems of war and peace, national and world security.