Vilnius - The three Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania agreed on Monday that a new undersea electricity connection linking their energy grid to Sweden will make landfall in Lithuania. The surprise announcement was made at an energy conference being held in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, where the three leaders signed a joint declaration.

Until now, both Lithuania and Latvia had competing claims to be linked to the Nordic energy grid via the undersea cable dubbed "Swedlink."

Vilnius  - Lithuanian Foreign Minister Vygaudas Usackas said Tuesday that his country reserved the right to leave the UN's racism conference in Geneva early if the final declaration proved unacceptable, or even if the atmosphere turned sour.

Speaking during a working visit to Poland, Usackas described a speech delivered Monday by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at the conference on racism as unacceptable, provoking and insulting to Israel and the Jewish people.

Vilnius - A Lithuanian scientist told parliamentarians Wednesday that two major infrastructure projects planned to run beneath the Baltic Sea could get in each others' way, raising the possibility of a seabed scramble to finish first.

Vilnius  - Industrial production (IP) in Lithuania nosedived by more than 15 per cent in February, according to official figures released Monday by the national statistics office.

EU member Lithuania is the biggest of the three Baltic states with the largest industrial sector. However, its industrial muscle appears to be withering in the face of the global economic downturn according to data from Statistics Lithuania showing industrial production fell by 15.3 per cent year-on-year in February.

January's figures showed a contraction by 5.6 per cent.

Vilnius - Lithuanian Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius welcomed a European Union decision Friday to allocate 175 million euros (240 million dollars) towards laying an undersea "power link" from Sweden to either to Lithuania or Latvia.

"The decision is most welcome as it not only enables us to build an interconnection with Sweden which is important for all Lithuanian energy consumers but also testifies to the feeling of solidarity that the European Union showed again," Kubilius said.

Vilnius - One hundred days after he swept to power in a general election, Lithuanian Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius sounded an optimistic note Wednesday about his country's chances of adopting the euro.

Speaking to reporters after a meeting with President Valdas Adamkus, Kubilius said Lithuania would be ready "at any time" to replace its national currency, the lita, with the pan-European currency.