"Missing out on this opportunity would be detrimental not only to Ukraine but also the European Union," Ažubalis was quoted as saying in a statement by the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
At a Monday conference on EU-Ukrainian relations in Brussels, Ažubalis said the EU had an obligation to help Ukraine pursue its European integration path, the statement said. The Lithuanian foreign minister said he was convinced the outlook for European integration was a key factor encouraging democratic reforms.
Ažubalis also met with Valeriy Khoroshkovsky, Ukraine's recently-appointed First Vice-Premier, responsible for EU integration issues, during the conference.
"Attention was paid to the European society's negative attitude to selective justice in the cases of former Ukrainian top officials Yulia Tymoshenko, Yuriy Lucenko and others. Ažubalis expressed regret over Ukrainian court's decision on 27 February to sentence former Ukrainian Minister of Interioir Affairs, Lucenko, to four years in prison," the ministry said in the statement.
EU-Ukrainian relations have been deteriorating recently following trials and convictions of the country's former government members, which Brussels calls politically motivated.