As members of the NATO parliamentary assembly prepared to held their first-ever meeting in a former Soviet country tomorrow, the body's secretary-general expressed regret that Russia had decided to stay away.
Simon Lunn, who heads the parliamentary assembly, said Russia considered that by attending the meeting in Lithuania it would be implicitly agreeing that the country could join NATO.
"We regret this decision, we feel it would be much better for them to be there and to continue to express their view," he added.
The meeting is due to bring together members of parliament from the 19 NATO states and 16 other countries, notably from the Alliance's Partnership for Peace programme for former east-bloc countries.
With some 1,000 people, the event will be the biggest of its kind the capital Vilnius has ever hosted. AFP