Linkevičius, 51, said he and President Dalia Grybauskaitė shared basic views on foreign policy matters.
"There is probably a reserve in good neighbourly relations. Not everything failed due to our mistakes and, objectively speaking, we cannot dictate our terms and conditions everywhere, indeed, the fact is that there is a reserve there and efforts should be made in this direction," Linkevičius, the Social Democratic candidate to head the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told journalists after meeting with President Dalia Grybauskaitė on Monday morning.
Speaking about Belarus, the candidate said Lithuania could launch initiatives for EU dialogue with the country, as "we know our neighbours, know their mentality, culture and share a number of economic interests."
In Linkevičius' words, there are in Belarus, which has been subjected to EU sanctions, "partners we could talk to."
"I can give a cautious opinion that there are reserves in the EU dialogue with the country. In the country, there are partners whom we could talk to and we should do it. Regardless of knowing that Belarus should still do a lot of homework and we keep reminding them of it, we all know about it, however, we also have reserves to make the dialogue more efficient," the diplomat said.
Linkevičius, former defense minister and former envoy to NATO, said he and the president shared an opinion on foreign policy matters: "As far as I remember, we have lately always shared the opinions."
The candidate refused to elaborate on Lithuania's relations with Russia and Poland - he restated on a few occasions that he saw potential there but added that the very reshuffle of the government allowed the so-called reset of relations.
"When the administration, in this case - the government, changes, there is a chance of a reset. This does not mean that everything would be revised, it does not mean revolutions. But a fresh look will be taken at what we have and at events - this applies to all countries. But all this will be done in the light of Lithuania's interests, the interests of Lithuanian people and nothing will be done at the expense of these interests," Linkevičius said.
Speaking about priorities, the candidate spoke about relations with the Nordic and the Baltic states, the need to maintain close working relations with partners in the EU, United States, and NATO.
Linkevičius said Lithuania's presidency over the European Union Council in the second half of 2013 would be the biggest challenge.
Linkevičius was Lithuania's defense minister twice in 1993-1996 and 2000-2004. He was an ambassador to NATO twice in 1997-2000 and 2005-2011. Linkevičius was appointed Lithuania's ambassador to Belarus earlier this year.
