MINISTRY OF THE INTERIOR OF THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA Minister Mr. Raimundas Palaitis

Sventaragio str. 2,
LT-01510 Vilnius
LITHUANIA
CC/ MINISTRY OF FINANCE OF THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA
CC/ Prime Minister Mr. Andrius Kubilius
CC/ Parliament
CC/ President

REGISTERED LETTER

Dear Minister, Luxembourg, 31 March 2009

I approach you on behalf of the European Confederation of Police, EuroCOP, umbrella
organisation of police unions and staff organisations in Europe in order to ask you to
reconsider the severe cuts that your government is implementing in the police service in
Lithuania in reaction to the financial crisis.

There are growing concerns in the European police community that Lithuania’s ability to

perform its role as a serious partner in the Schengen area will be severely damaged. These
concerns reach beyond the immediate fulfillment of the criteria of the Schengen catalogue.
They relate to the inherent dangers that underfinanced police services pose for internal
security not only in a particular Member State, but in the entire European Union.
Cutting police budgets further will have a devastating effect on the significant progress that
has been achieved in Lithuania since 2004. Citizens in Lithuania and, indeed, across the
EU, will have to bear the sustained burden of short-sighted austerity measures far beyond
the current financial crisis through higher levels of crime and corruption.
It is therefore our conviction that Member States have to resist the temptation to achive
short term savings by cutting police budgets. This will be to the detriment of citizens’ safety
and security in all Member States. Furthermore, maintaining and further improving public
security will also be a key factor in ensuring that Latvia will be able to benefit in the
economic recovery once the financial crisis is over.
We hope that the EU will stand together to prevent this from happening and I wish to
assure you of EuroCOP’s support in arguing the case against cutting the police budget in
Lithuania. Cutting police wages, reducing personnel and saving on equipment is not the
right answer to rising crime rates and will surely not reduce the risk of corruption. We have
already notified the Czech EU Presidency of the need to consider a European response to
European Confederation of Police