Budrys says ministry is checking further circumstances in embassy inquiry

Lithuania’s Foreign Ministry is examining additional circumstances after an internal commission investigated possible violations at the country’s embassy in the United States, Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys said, LRT reported.

Budrys said the ministry was checking financial matters and other issues that required clarification. The commission had completed its investigation, but decided that some further work was needed from a different perspective, he told reporters at the Seimas on Thursday.

The commission submitted its findings last Friday. They gave the ministry grounds to take further action, and Budrys instructed relevant departments to assess the circumstances and propose measures by the end of October.

Budrys said he had seen the findings but would not comment on them or specify what was now being examined. He said the ministry wanted to conclude the process as soon as possible and expected to finish the additional work shortly.

Delfi first reported concerns about a reportedly negative working environment at the embassy. The news outlet obtained results from an anonymous survey conducted late last year, in which embassy employees gave negative responses. Delfi also reported that the ministry had received complaints about Ambassador Gediminas Varvuolis, including allegations of disrespectful conduct, raised voices and long working hours.

Varvuolis has previously said he had not personally heard complaints from embassy staff. He was appointed ambassador to the United States last summer, replacing diplomat Audra Plepyte. He previously led Lithuania’s embassies in Japan and Belgium and served as deputy head of Lithuania’s mission to NATO.