Lithuania: a fresh Social politician government

osw.waw.pl 1 month ago

Analysis

2025-09-26

Lithuania: a fresh Social politician government

Joanna Hyndle-Hussein

On 25 September, the Sejm of Lithuania swore an oath to the Social politician government of Inga Ruginienė and accepted its programme. The fresh cabinet is supported by a coalition of 3 parliamentary clubs – ruling since the election in 2024 of the Social Democratic organization (LSDP), nationalist and accused of anti-Semitism group Świet Niemna (PPNA) and opposition club created by the agrarian Union of Pears and Greens (LVŽS) and the Polish Election Action in Lithuania – Association of Christian Families (AWPL–ZChR). The coalition has 82 for 141 seats (52 MPs belong to the LSDP, 19 to the PPNA – and 11 to the combined club LVŽS and AWPL-ZCHR). 9 out of 14 members of the fresh government were elected by the Social Democrats, 2 members of the LVŽS and AWPL–ZChR, and 3 members of the PPNA.

Head of the cabinet from the Social politician Gintautas Paluckas election resigned in August due to allegations of conflict of interest. The LSDP then resigned from the coalition with the Union of Democrats "In the Name of Lithuania" (DSVL) and invited LVŽS and AWPL-ZCHR to replace it. With the removal of the Democrats from the government, the position of president of the Sejm lost the leader of this group Saulius Skvernelis – he was replaced by an experienced Social politician MP, erstwhile Minister of wellness and Defence Juozas Olekas.

Both the composition of Ruginienė's cabinet (as yet Minister of Social Welfare and Labour) and its programme indicate that it will proceed the policy of the left-wing and pro-social government of Paluckas. The fresh Prime Minister made many populist promises that may neglect to meet the 2028 elections. The main destabilising origin that can lead to the dissolution of the ruling coalition will be the conflicts that PPNA generates in it.

Comment

Social policy and national safety will stay priorities of the fresh government. The nonsubjective is to safe defence funding, including the implementation of the commitment to increase the budget to 5% of GDP, strengthen border protection and keep support for Ukraine.In abroad policy, the main tasks are to standardise diplomatic relations with China and conduct policies in line with another EU countries' relations with Beijing. The office intends to fight poverty, index pensions, rise social benefits and salaries in the budget area, and support young families. It besides aims to improve the availability of medical services and to limit the provision of private services and to offer favourable heating prices to households. The Prime Minister besides announced an improvement in the state of the roads. Ruginienė was incapable to answer the question of the means to fulfil these promises, in peculiar as the government does not announce the introduction of fresh taxes in addition to expanding excise duties on drugs specified as tobacco and alcohol.
The fresh cabinet was dominated by social democrats, but crucial influences managed to keep president Gitanas Nausėda. He ensured that Mr Kęstutis Budrys, his erstwhile abroad Policy Advisor, was the head of the MFA, which guarantees unmistakable cooperation in carrying out tasks common to the head of state and government of the area of action.
Nausėda besides pushed for the unpartisan Žygimantas Vaičiūnas, acting as Minister of Energy. It is intended to safeguard the continuation of the deepening of Lithuania's independency and energy self-sufficiency. The aim was to prevent PPNA Remigijus Žemaitaitis, who should manage this hotel under the coalition agreement, from gaining control of key energy companies. According to the President, the representatives of this group do not warrant the defence of the public interest. In addition, there is an investigation into the financing of PPNA, and there is simply a trial against its leader, accused of inciting hatred of Jews and denying the Holocaust. NausėdIt was possible to exposure the political weakness of the group, which was incapable to present an unpartisan candidate for the position of Minister of Energy. After exchanging with social democrats the ministries – Ministry of Culture for the Ministry of Energy – PPNA nominated as the head of this first comparative of Žemaitaitis, Ignotas Adomavičius, who, although graduating from artistic school, is simply a food producer. The president accepted his candidacy only to finish in a constitutional deadline the protracted process of forming the government. However, this nomination caused not only outrage to creative environments, but besides opposition to the judaic community – she expressed concern that the typical of PPNA would limit the improvement of institutions connected with commemorating the past of Jews in Lithuania.
The creation of Ruginienė's cabinet showed the President's increased assurance in representatives of the Polish number – in the fresh government they will include 2 ministries. Former AWPL-ZChR activist and now Social politician Władysław Kondratowicz maintained the position of Minister of the Interior in the Paluckas government. A typical of AWPL–ZChR Rita Tamašunienė, who headed the Ministry of Justice in Skvernelis' government, besides entered the cabinet, and will now include the Ministry of Justice. Nausėda stressed that members of the AWPL-ZCHR, like the second politician, can act independently of Waldemar Tomaszewski's leader and do not identify with his extremist views, judged by the president as pro-Russian. This approach of the head of state can be interpreted as an incentive for representatives of the Polish number to proceed emancipation from politics and individual Tomaszewski.

ANNEX. Biography of the fresh Prime Minister

Inga Ruginienė (born 1981) graduated in the field of public health; she besides studied forestry and received her master's degree in labour law in 2022. A crucial part of her professional activities active working in the Lithuanian Federation of Trade Unions of Forestry and Forestry Industry, and then in the Lithuanian Trade Union Confederation, on which she took the presidency in 2018. She besides took the position of Vice-President of the global Confederation of Trade Unions of the region of Europe. She started her political career only in 2024 erstwhile she first obtained a parliamentary mandate – she competed on the list of social democrats. After the election, Gitanas Paluckas entrusted her with the function of Minister of Social Policy and Labour, and after his resignation, the LSDP Bureau elected her as a candidate for Prime Minister.

Ruginienė is not the president of the Social Democracy – this position is held by Mindaugas Sikevičius and he played a central function in the formation of the coalition. The fresh Prime Minister of the opposition accuses of deficiency of political experience, as evidenced by the long 30-day process of creating her cabinet and independency erstwhile presenting the program in the Sejm, erstwhile she took advantage of suggestions from ministers. It was amazing that in 2015 and 2018, after Russia annexed Crimea, Ruginienė left for Moscow, where she visited distant relatives from her grandmother. In consequence to questions about these reports, she explained that her household had broken up in russian times: any of her members remained in Ukraine and any emigrated to Russia. However, the Prime Minister declared that she supported Kiev and would do so until his victory.

Composition of the Ruginienė Government

Nominated by Social Democrats:

Ministry of abroad Affairs – Kęstutis Budrys,

Ministry of the Interior – Władysław Kondratowicz,

Ministry of Defence — Dovilė Šakalienė,

Ministry of Energy — Žygimantas Vaičiūnas,

Ministry of Finance – Kristupas Vaitiekūnas,

Ministry of Social Welfare and Labour – Jūratė Zailskienė,

Ministry of Communications – Juras Taminskas,

Ministry of wellness – Marija Jakubauskinė,

Ministry of Education, discipline and athletics – Raminta Popovienė

Nominated by the Holy Spirit: