Politics
Lithuanian president proposes new candidate for prosecutor general
President Dalia Grybauskaitė nominated judge Evaldas Pašilis for the post of prosecutor general. […]
Politics
Politics
Opposition leader: next year’s budget will ruin Lithuania’s reputation
There are good things in next year’s budget, like the increase of national defence budget, but Lithuania will also begin to lose its reputation with international financial institutions and finance markets, Andrius Kubilius, the leader of the opposition in the Seimas (parliament), told Žinių Radijas radio. […]
Politics
Agrarian Peasant and Green party set to become Seimas force for first time ever
With growing popularity in the polls, analysts believe that the Lithuanian Peasant and Green Union will cross the 5-percent barrier required to become a considerable force in the Seimas for the first time ever when elections are held in October 2016. […]
Politics
President Grybauskaitė: benefits for refugees should not be increased
Refugees should not get bigger benefits than people who have worked in Lithuania for 30 or 40 years, President of Lithuania Dalia Grybauskaitė told LRT Radijas radio. According to the president, Lithuania has already designated considerable benefits compared to other countries. […]
Politics
Opposition MPs want scrutiny on Lithuanian Social Democratic Party’s hiring policies
MPs of the conservative Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats (TS-LKD) party have asked the Special Investigation Service (STT) and the Public Service Department (VTD) to look into media reports about alleged dubious practices of hiring for government jobs by the Social Democratic Party (LSDP). […]
Politics
Conservative MP asks to remove chairman of parliamentary Legal Affair Committee
Agnė Bilotaitė, member of the parliamentary group of the conservative Homeland Union – Lithuanian Christian Democrats (TS-LKD), has asked Seimas Speaker Loreta Graužinienė to remove MP Julius Sabatauskas from the position as chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Legal Affairs. […]
Politics
MEP Guoga does not give up plans to run for Seimas despite dual citizenship issue
A Lithuanian member of the European Parliament, Antanas Guoga, who has Australian citizenship, has recently discovered that Lithuanian laws do not allow foreign citizens to run in parliamentary elections. Guoga was planning to be a candidate of the Liberal Movement party in Vilkaviškis single-member constituency and challenge the incumbent Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius in 2016. […]
Politics
Five Lithuanian parties would pass parliamentary election threshold
Five parties would pass the 5-percent threshold and secure seats in the Lithuanian Parliament if elections were to take place in the nearest future, the latest public opinion poll has revealed. […]
Politics
Lithuania continues to oppose permanent EU refugee resettlement mechanism
A meeting between President Dalia Grybauskaitė and the Parliamentary Committees on Foreign and European Affairs discussed the EU’s refugee relocation scheme. According to the European Affairs Committee chair Gediminas Kirkilas, Lithuania’s position is to oppose proposals of introducing a permanent mechanism for refugee resettlement. […]
Politics
Politics
President Grybauskaitė censures ‘witch-hunt’ at Public Security Service
After accusations of disloyalty and corruption were publicly voiced against the leadership of the Public Security Service (VST) and the institution itself, President Dalia Grybauskaitė has said that circumstances and facts must be examined before making judgements. She also criticized the new head of the VST for publicly discussing problems in the service. […]
Politics
Politico lists Lithuanian MEP among 28 influential Europeans
Political magazine Politico has announced the list of the most influential personalities in European politics, “The 28 People from 28 Countries who are Shaping, Shaking and Stirring Europe”. Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Antanas Guoga has become the first Lithuanian to be included in the list. […]
Politics
Dual citizenship bars MEP and American-Lithuanian from running for parliament
During a meeting with the Chair of Lithuania’s Central Electoral Commission Zenonas Vaigauskas, Lithuanian-American Dr. Darius Udrys and Lithuanian-Australian MEP Antanas Guoga were informed that they are ineligible to stand as candidates for election to Lithuania’s Seimas due to the fact that both hold a second passport. […]
Politics
PM initiates probe into Lithuania’s Public Security Service
Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius has instructed the head of the State Security Department (VSD) together with Interior Minister Saulius Skvernelis to carry out a comprehensive inquiry into the Public Security Service (VST) under the Ministry of the Interior following an article in the media. […]
Politics
Politics
Lithuanian president says interior minister staying in office is ‘his choice’
President of Lithuania Dalia Grybauskaitė says Saulius Skvernelis‘ decision to remain in office as the interior minister is “his choice”. […]
Politics
Political scientists: Interior minister overreacted
Political scientists say that Saulius Skvernelis, Lithuania’s Interior Minister delegated by the party Order and Justice, overreacted when announcing his resignation. Political scientists say that although President Dalia Grybauskaite criticised the minister, she did not send a clear message that he should step down. […]
Politics
Skvernelis stays as Lithuania’s minister of the interior
Saulius Skvernelis, Lithuania’s minister of the interior who submitted a resignation letter a week ago, is staying in the post. He announced the decision on Monday morning, after a meeting with Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius. […]
Politics
President Grybauskaitė believes Freedom Prize should be given to Landsbergis
Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaitė is also among those who believe that the Seimas should have awarded the Freedom Prize 2015 to Vytautas Landsbergis, the first head of the restored and independent Republic of Lithuania, chairman of the Supreme Council of Lithuania (Reconstituent Seimas), signatory of the Independence Restoration Act. […]
Politics
Lithuanian parliament passes law on refugee resettlement
The Lithuanian parliament passed legislation on Thursday that clears up regulations of refugee resettlement in the country. […]