A delegation of representatives of the Council of the European Union visited Kaunas to see how the Council of Europe’s convention on the basic protections of ethnic minorities was being implemented. They met with representatives from different ethnic groups at the Various Ethnic Cultures Center in Kaunas including from the Kaunas Jewish Community. Delegation members inquired about the attitude of different government institutions towards the Jewish community, Jewish community needs, financial and other aid to the community, cooperation with the Israeli embassy and other organizations and the general prevailing climate in Lithuania. Kaunas Jewish Community chairman Gercas Žakas praised Israeli embassy activities in both maintaining and promoting Jewish culture in the wider sense and in expanding ties between the two countries. He spoke about expressions of anti-Semitism in Lithuania and told Council delegates about the shocking proposal by Lithuanian academic ethics and procedures commission ombudsman V. Sadauskas to award 1,000 euros for information about Jews who murdered, tortured or deported ethnic Lithuanians.