Lithuanian coalition ministers prepare to leave government
Wednesday 10th June 2026 on 13:00 in
Lithuania
The two ministers from the “Nemuno aušra” party are preparing to step down from their government positions after the Social Democrats decided to remove the party from the ruling coalition, reports LRT.
Environment Minister Kęstutis Žuromskas said he accepts the change as a natural part of political life. “I take it as a natural state of affairs. I always knew this was a possibility, and now it has happened. We are continuing our work as planned. After all, this is the end of the spring session of the Seimas, and we want to finish the projects we have. We plan to adopt six bills during this session. We are simply continuing our work and waiting for a new government to be formed,” he told journalists on Tuesday.
Žuromskas has not yet decided on his next steps after leaving office. “No, I haven’t thought about what I’ll do next yet. Right now, all my focus is on the work that can still be completed. I’ll think about it later,” he said, adding that his time in government had been a valuable experience. “It was definitely a useful experience, definitely worth it. I think we did a lot of good work.”
Agriculture Minister Andrius Palionis also described his impending departure as a natural part of political life. “In politics, you can never know when your last meeting will be,” he told journalists at the government meeting. “You know that there is always a beginning and an end. I’m truly sorry for the sector, not the position.”
Palionis plans to take a break before returning to the business sector. “First, I will rest, and then, as I planned a year and a half ago, I will probably return to business,” he said when asked about his future plans.
Over the weekend, the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party (LSDP) council decided to change the ruling majority formed last summer, removing “Nemuno aušra” and starting consultations with the Democratic Union “For Lithuania”. The current ruling majority in the Seimas has 80 members. A new coalition would have slightly fewer, with 75 votes.
Palionis previously served as Minister of Agriculture from 2019 to 2020 and as vice-minister in Ignas Hofmano’s team in 2025. Žuromskas worked as vice-minister under Povilas Poderskis at the Ministry of Environment before becoming minister.