Lithuania's Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis met with UNESCO Director-General, underlined the issues of freedom of expression and safety of journalists
On 27 January in Paris, France, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Gabrielius Landsbergis met with the UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay. The Foreign Minister praised the Director General for her efforts to create an effective UNESCO that would be prepared for modern challenges, and discussed the organisation's work on ethics of artificial intelligence (AI), common priorities for UNESCO and Lithuania in the fields of communication and information, freedom of expression, safety of journalists, and Lithuania’s involvement in the fight against disinformation.
Landsbergis and Azoulay discussed the importance of UNESCO monitoring mission continuity in Crimea, as well as the need to ensure freedom of expression and the safety of journalists in Belarus.
Landsbergis also presented Lithuania’s candidature for election to the Executive Board of UNESCO for the period 2021 - 2025. “We are ready to further strengthen UNESCO's human rights-based activities, to continue implementing our commitments in the field of communication and information, to work together on AI, Futures of Education, and Open Science initiatives,” said the Foreign Minister.
Landsbergis also presented the application "Modernist Kaunas: Architecture of Optimism, 1919–1939" that aims to include Kaunas modernist architecture in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Photo: UNESCO/Christelle ALIX
