The United States is pleased today to have the honor of welcoming President Adamkus to the World Trade Organization on this special occasion to approve the terms of accession of his country to the WTO. We congratulate Lithuania on this achievement.

The Lithuania negotiating team, led by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Rimkunas, worked hard to deal with difficult issues, and they should be proud of their efforts that led to this important day.

Lithuania's accession package represents an important milestone in its economic transformation. Their participation in the WTO complements its broader policy objectives and will make an important contribution to its drive for increased economic growth through economic reform, liberalization, and diversification.

The adoption of WTO provisions, and Lithuania's own commitments to the basic principles of transparency, predictability, due process, and rule of law, will contribute to the development of a legal framework necessary for further growth and development. Lithuania has developed a solid structure to meet the competitive challenges of the global economy.

During the last two years, Lithuania has successfully implemented a TRIPS-compatible intellectual property regime, revised its regulations to provide for the implementation of the WTO Customs Valuation Agreement, and has committed itself to establishing a non-discriminatory and transparent system of applying standards and sanitary measures to imports. They have eliminated quantitative restrictions on imports, stopped the use of minimum import values, and reformed the excise tax system to remove most elements of discrimination. Lithuania also has expressed its interest in becoming a member in the Agreement on Government Procurement and Agreement on Trade in Civil Aircraft.

We look forward to working with Lithuania, as a full member of the WTO, in the very near future.