Lithuanian prime minister says she could represent country at European Council

Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginienė has stated she would be well-suited to represent the country at meetings of the European Council (EC). The comments were made in an interview with news portal Lrytas, as reported by ELTA.

In the interview, Ruginienė expressed support for a return to a more flexible arrangement that would allow responsibilities to be shared between the president and the government based on their respective competencies. “I could certainly participate very well there,” she said. “It would be very good if we had the old system, where responsibilities could be shared according to competencies. I believe we would agree and share them. Unfortunately, at the European level, there is now a completely new system where sharing is no longer possible. That may be the problem. But it is not something we can decide—those decisions are made at a much higher level.”

The prime minister also emphasised that she does not wish to see the government and presidency institutions set against each other in discussions over representation. “I would not want the two institutions—the government and the presidency—to be artificially pitted against each other. We are mature adults; we can agree and coordinate on certain matters. I would like this issue to be left to us to resolve,” she stated.

Last October, Prime Minister Ruginienė’s advisor, Ignas Dobrovolskas, said the president and prime minister had agreed to consult regularly on who should represent Lithuania at EC meetings. At the time, he also did not rule out the possibility of the prime minister participating in informal EC gatherings.

The current system has drawn criticism from conservative lawmakers, who have called for the government leader to be allowed to represent Lithuania in the EC depending on the topics under discussion. President Gitanas Nausėda previously described such proposals as intolerable and unacceptable. The matter was initially addressed through draft legislation on EC representation, though the initiative was later abandoned by the former ruling coalition.

The European Council consists of the heads of state or government of EU member states, the EC president, the president of the European Commission, and the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. Council meetings are held at least twice every six months in Brussels, with extraordinary sessions convened as needed.