Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė said she had discussed the candidacy of conservative Andrius Kubilius for the post of European Commissioner with EC President Ursula von der Leyen.
The prime minister also told the radio Žinių Radijas on Thursday that she sees a need to change the national procedure for nominating candidates, which is “very atypical”.
She indicated that von der Leyen was generally well-disposed towards Kubilius, a former prime minister and now a member of the European Parliament.
“Since this is a tete-a-tete, I can’t give quotes, but it is very difficult to have a negative reaction to the candidacy of Kubilis, and it is very difficult to have any major criticism of the candidacy in general, because the European elections were also won by the European People’s Party, which was led by von der Leyen,” Šimonytė said.
“Kubilis’ experience hard not to appreciate. I think it will be useful for the Commission president to have people who have a solid reputation, a very wide experience and can help her do the great things that she herself has identified in her speech in the European Parliament,” the prime minister added.
Von der Leyen has asked member states to present two candidates each, a man and a woman, for the Commission. However, very few have heeded he request.
Šimonytė believes that Lithuania presenting only one male candidate will not impede its chances of getting an important portfolio.
“It is already difficult for us to put forward one candidate because there are so many steps in the decision. I am not saying that it would be difficult to put forward a second one, but there is simply no legal procedure. Because under our law, we are putting forward a candidate for the EC, not candidates, not multiple candidates,” Šimonytė said.
She said that the Lithuanian procedure is “perhaps too complicated”.
“I think there is a lot to think about, but the procedure is set in motion now and I hope it will be successfully completed. Then, if there is a momentum for the next parliament to think about it, we can return to the issue [of changing nomination rules], because the Lithuanian procedure is really very atypical,” the prime minister said.
She said she understood the pressure on von der Layen to have a gender-balanced commission, but in Lithuania this goal “is not purely legally enforceable”.
The nomination of former Prime Minister Kubilius to the EC comes after President Gitanas Nausėda rejected the nomination of Gabrielius Landsbergis, the conservative leader and foreign minister.
The president has already endorsed the candidacy of Kubilius. The parliament, Seimas, will take up the issue at an extraordinary session in early September.
Kubilius, who has served in the European Parliament since 2019, was re-elected for a second term this year.
Lithuania’s EC candidate is formally proposed by the government, subject to the approval of the president and the Seimas. It also needs the EP’s approval.
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