Lithuanian Prime Minister categorically disagrees with proposed cuts in EU support

"We will indeed be categorically against the current calculations and the projected distribution of Cohesion Fund money among individual countries, as the three Baltic states would be badly hurt due to the calculation formula applied," the prime minister said on national radio.

Proposals on the EU's new financial perspective, which is scheduled to start in 2014, will be high on the agenda of Kubilius' upcoming meetings with his colleagues from Central and Eastern European countries that speak against cuts in EU assistance.

"We would not want to see any decrease in the overall financial line of the cohesion policy in the next financial perspective," he added.

Lithuania is not happy with the proposal to peg the size of support to its gross domestic product (GDP), which was pulled down by the crisis by nearly 15 percent in 2009. According to calculations, the European Commission's formula would lead to Lithuania receiving 1 billion litas (EUR 290 m) less in 2014-2020, as compared with the 2007-2013 period. The calculation mechanism would cause lower support to other Baltic nations.

Intensive negotiations on the future financial perspective are currently underway between member-states and the European Commission. However, the talks are likely to drag into the next year. In Kubilius' words, both the European Commission and the EU's chairmanship in Denmark are “well aware” of the problems the Baltic nations are facing.