First cooperation agreement between the National Library of Lithuania and the National Library of France

From 21 to 23 January 2026, the President of the BnF, Gilles Pecout, and the Director of European and International Relations, Jean-François Roseau, went to Vilnius to meet with the heads of several Lithuanian heritage and cultural institutions, as a follow-up to the discussions initiated by the Library during the Lithuania in France season in 2024.

On this occasion, the first cooperation agreement between the BnF and its Lithuanian counterpart, the Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania, was signed in the presence of Minister of Culture Vaida Aleknavičienė and the French Ambassador to Lithuania and the Lithuanian Ambassador to France. Fruitful discussions also took place with teams from the National Library of Lithuania and its director Aušrinė Žilinskienė, the rector of Vilnius University Rimvydas Petrauskas, the director of the National Museum Rūta Kačkutė, and the director of the Museum of Fine Arts Arūnas Gelūnas.

Ahead of Lithuania’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union, several areas of cooperation were discussed, including welcoming Lithuanian professionals, mobilising European libraries to support Ukraine, and promoting shared documentary and cultural heritage among researchers and the general public.