Lithuania is continuing to strengthen its positions and competitiveness in the international transportations market. In order to maximally utilise the convenient geographic position of Lithuania and the potential offered by the European Union (EU) for development in the transport sector, new ways are being searched as to how to derive more revenue from international freight transportation by rail.
“Lithuanian Railways”, which is representing both the railway sector and the entire Lithuanian transport system, comprehending the need and benefit of international cooperation, is actively operating at all international levels. One of such examples is its cooperation with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development as well as private stevedoring companies on the development of Klaipėda Transport Hub. The project aims at financing the international container distribution centre in the port of Klaipėda.
The “Rail Baltica” Project is the most ambitious railway project on the eastern Baltic Sea coast, officially recognised by the Government of Lithuania to be an economic project of great importance to the state.
It has been nearly 200 years since the first train, pulled by English locomotive, has started moving. This invention together with the steam engine was the beginning of the industrial revolution around the world. Spectacular-looking locomotives soon appeared in first film and, according to the stories, people were frightened and ran away from the theater, trying to escape the impending doom.
Lithuania, while developing the container-train sector, is making investments into the Viking Train Project, whose route is running between the Baltic Sea and the Black Sea. After a huge and focused work of several years container trains have become a clear niche of transport in Lithuania that can be utilised, but Lithuania must also be prepared for an increased flow of containers and cargo via the Port of Klaipėda and Lithuanian railways.
In its colourful history, Turkey quite often did not manage to make up its mind as to whether it is a country belonging to the West or to the East. For us it is also difficult to understand this country: it is trivial, but if it is already participating in the Eurovision Song Contest, so maybe it belongs to Europe? Especially that Turkey is talking of its plans to access the European Union over more than a year already, furnishing from time to time new arguments why it should belong to the community of our continent. Nevertheless, the Islamic religion, a different world-view and close connections with the Near East countries are distancing and shutting it off from our Western world.
