2024-12-16
Gediminas Šimkus: Further integration to enhance EU’s resilience and economic potential
Europe is currently facing a number of challenges, the key ones being the growing global geopolitical fragmentation and its impact on the economy. Europe’s economic potential and resilience to external shocks could be enhanced by further integration, which would not only boost the region’s strategic autonomy but also ensure an increase in industrial capacity, including defence.
All this will be discussed today at Lietuvos bankas’ Annual Economics Conference dedicated to the 10th anniversary of the euro introduction in Lithuania.
“By adopting the euro, Lithuania demonstrated that the European project is attractive. And its objectives of economic stability and geopolitical cohesion continue to hold appeal. We should not only continue to stay together but should also further deepen our integration: improving our single market modus operandi, increasing growth and productivity and enhancing institutional capabilities. These are not just economic matters. Certainly, not in the context of russia’s unjustified invasion of Ukraine”, says Gediminas Šimkus, Chair of the Board of Lietuvos bankas.
According to him, the further economic integration of the EU must also reflect the goals of enhancing security. They must cover not only defence spending but also investments in new technologies, energy security and critical infrastructure, which is one of the key prerequisites for sustainable economic growth.
Broader integration of the EU market would improve the conditions for business development and provide businesses with more opportunities to deploy innovations and compete effectively, which in turn would boost productivity throughout the Community.
Opening remarks at the Conference will be delivered by Gitanas Nausėda, President of the Republic of Lithuania, while Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank, will deliver a keynote speech.
The Conference will be attended, among others, by Valdis Dombrovskis, Member of the European Commission, Rimantas Šadžius, Minister of Finance, Enrico Letta, President of the Jacques Delors Institute and former Prime Minister of Italy, Alfred Kammer, Director of the European Department at the IMF, Giancarlo Corsetti, Chair at the Robert Schuman Centre and Professor of Economics at the European University Institute, Beata Javorcik, Chief Economist of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and Andriy Pyshnyy, Governor of the National Bank of Ukraine.
For more information on the Conference, see Lietuvos bankas’ website.