Six parties cleared the electoral threshold in the first round of elections to the Lithuanian parliament, the Seimas, on 13 October 2024, LRT reports. The first round saw altogether 70 MPs elected through party lists, including 18 for the Social Democratic Party of Lithuania (LSDP), 17 for Homeland Union, 14 for the Dawn of Nemunas,…
Lithuania’s main opposition party, the Social Democratic Party of Lithuania (LSDP), scored an expected win in the first round of elections to the country’s parliament, the Seimas, LRT reported. LSDP won 19.36% of votes, which was slightly higher than predicted in polls. The ruling conservative Homeland Union and the new far-right opposition party, Dawn of…
Lithuanians are voting in the first round of elections for the country’s parliament, the Seimas, LRT reports. Under the electoral system, a second round of voting in single-member constituencies where no candidate gets over 50% of votes will take place on 27 October 2024. Altogether 14 parties and 1 coalition of parties listed candidates for…
The Lithuanian parliament, the Seimas, has passed a resolution designating Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organisation, BNS reports. The Seimas is the first national parliament in the EU to declare IRGC a terrorist group. The resolution calls on the EU to add the IRGC to the union’s list of terrorist organisations…
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda has submitted to parliament a proposal to revoke three treaties with Russia and Belarus on economic cooperation, BNS reports. Nauseda proposed denouncing treaties on the promotion and protection of investments with Belarus and Russia as well as a treaty to avoid double taxation with Russia. Lithuania signed all three treaties in…
The Lithuanian parliament, the Seimas, has voted to keep a civil union bill to recognise same-sex partnerships on the agenda of the parliament’s autumn session, BNS reports. Altogether 48 MPs voted to keep the bill on the agenda, another 48 were against, and 7 abstained. MPs initially supported the civil union bill in spring 2023….
The Baltic and Polish parliamentary committees of European affairs held a joint meeting in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, on 15-16 September 2024, BNS reported. The committees urged the EU to strengthen the protection of Poland’s border amid a new surge in migrant flows. Zygimantas Pavilionis, chairman of the European affairs committee of the Lithuanian parliament,…
The Lithuanian parliament, the Seimas, has approved in first reading a bill that would oblige foreign workers to serve customers in Lithuanian, BNS reports. Altogether 100 MPs voted in favour, 5 against, and 14 abstained. Under the amendments, the language requirement would only apply to employees who have direct contact with clients. Also, manufacturers, sellers,…
Lithuania’s Foreign Minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, criticised President Gitanas Nauseda for delaying a decision to end investment protection treaties with Russia and Belarus, BNS reports. Landsbergis noted that the government had proposed revoking the treaties back in May 2024. He insisted that Nauseda would have had enough time to refer the issue to the parliament, the…