“In objective terms, all the criteria for joining are there, so that’s the objective thing. But the political matter – do we join and then when we join – is something that Šadžius [Lithuania’s Finance Minister Rimantas Šadžius] should say,” former president of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) told reporters at the Eurofi Financial Forum, which opens in Vilnius on Thursday.
Meanwhile Šadžius believes that integration into the European economy is the most important goal for Lithuania.
“What I know is that we should continue our policies, especially with fiscal discipline, and this could bring us to our goal. But of course, what I’m always saying – joining the euro zone is not a goal in itself, it’s a measure of preparing Lithuania’s economy to be integrated into the European economy,” the minister said.
Lithuania plans to adopt the euro in 2015.
