On May 15, Lithuania became the 40th signatory to the Artemis Accords in a ceremony held in Vilnius. The Artemis Accords were established in 2020 by the United States and seven other countries to set out a practical set of principles to guide space exploration.
The Minister of Economy and Innovation, Aušrinė Armonaitė, signed the Accords for Lithuania with U.S. Ambassador Kara C. McDonald as witness. NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy welcomed Lithuania via a recorded message.
"The U.S.-Lithuania relationship has never been stronger," the message stated. "From collaboration in security and defense, to partnerships in trade and investment, the relationship between our two countries continues to flourish across a wide range of areas. We extend that partnership into outer space, through the Artemis Accords."
With this signing, Lithuania joins 39 other nations - Angola, Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Colombia, Czech Republic, Ecuador, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria Poland Republic of Korea Romania Rwanda Saudi Arabia Singapore Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States Uruguay - in affirming the Accords' principles for sustainable civil space activity.
The Department of State and NASA lead the United States' outreach and implementation of the Accords. For more information about these accords or media inquiries related to them can be directed towards OES-Press@state.gov or visit https://www.state.gov/artemis-accords/.
