"If the economic partnership agreement is concluded between Japan and the EU, trade and other economic activities between Lithuania and Japan will be further enhanced. That can be very much expected, so it's a very fruitful thing for both countries," he told reporters after meeting with Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius.
Butkevičius said that Japan was interested in Lithuania, which is holding the EU's rotating six-month presidency, making efforts toward the signing of the agreement.
"They are very much interested in Lithuania making efforts for the agreement with the European Union and Japan to be signed. Japan is interested in the EU market and certain trade bridges from Japan to the EU are being sought," he told reporters after the meeting.
The prime minister also said that he had informed the Japanese business people about Lithuania's economic and energy situation and invited them to invest in the country.
According to the government's press service, the volume of trade between Lithuania and Japan last year totaled 177.37 million litas (EUR 51.4m). Lithuania's exports to Japan surged by 43.9 percent in 2012 compared with 2011 to 92.64 million litas.
The first round of EU-Japanese free trade talks was held in April. The second round took place in June-July, with the third round expected in October.
