Description: Lithuania’s Prime Minister, Gintautas Paluckas announced his resignation following public pressure from investigations into his businesses and protests calling for his impeachment. The Social Democrat Prime Minister was elected last year, forming a three – party coalition within Lithuania’s Parliament which is now expected to be disbanded. The resignation was prompted by detailed media investigations into his private businesses which forced Lithuania’s law enforcement and anti – corruption bodies to launch separate probes and independent investigations. The Prime Minister was accused of corruption and abuse of power and resigned shortly before the Parliament called for his impeachment. His resignation comes at a crucial moment within weeks before Russia launches joint military drills with Belarus and in a period of enhanced ground offensives in Ukraine.
Impact: Paluckas’s resignation would effectively leave Lithuania without a functioning government in the upcoming months potentially instigating a political crisis in the country. Lithuania’s foreign policy is unlikely to change as President Nauseda would spearhead further support for Ukraine and the strengthening of the country’s strategic alignment with Europe. The situation if prolonged could be exploited by Russia, which would most probably target Lithuania through hybrid attacks in an attempt to cause protracted destabilization. Lithuania in recent months strengthened the bilateral partnership with Germany through the permanent deployment of more than five thousand German troops on its territory and pushed for an initiative to abandon the Ottawa land mine treaty in order to boost border security. Depending on the timeline of the government’s reconstruction efforts, Lithuania’s destabilization would substantially debilitate EU and NATO’s eastern flank in a period where Russia is rapidly advancing on the frontlines in Ukraine and increasing his hybrid attack operations.