Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda supports discussions on changing the country’s constitution to allow hosting nuclear weapons in the country, BNS reports. The presence of allied nuclear weapons could serve as an appropriate and proportionate deterrent against armed aggression from hostile states, Nauseda argued. Juozas Olekas, speaker of the Lithuanian parliament, the Seimas, stated that such a constitutional amendment was worth doing, given the current geopolitical situation. Opposition leaders also expressed openness to discussing the issue. Olekas suggested that Lithuania consider joining broader NATO or European nuclear umbrella initiatives, while Defence Minister Robertas Kaunas insisted that Lithuania relied on US nuclear deterrence. Meanwhile, 40% of Lithuanians would support and 28% would oppose constitutional amendments allowing nuclear weapons to be deployed in the country, according to a Spinter Tyrimai poll for the opposition Homeland Union, ELTA reported.
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