Lithuania's reshaped government will seek to ensure the long-term presence of US military units in this NATO country, which borders both Russia and Belarus, according to a coalition government agreement signed on Thursday, UNN reports, citing Reuters.
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Social Democrat leader Mindaugas Sinkevičius is expected to become Prime Minister in the coming weeks, replacing his deputy Inga Ruginienė, who has held the post since 2025, and will bring the "For Lithuania" and "Union of Farmers and Greens" parties into the government.
The coalition agreement states that Lithuania, a staunch critic of Russia's war in Ukraine, will "seek a long-term and uninterrupted presence of US military units in Lithuania, recognizing the US presence as a priority for deterrence."
This summer, for the first time since 2020, Lithuania was left without a US armored battalion of about 1,000 troops, and Washington is reviewing the issue of the future presence of American troops, the Baltic country's defense minister said.
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on Thursday announced a new review of US troop deployments in Europe and threatened to withhold some US contributions to NATO if "free riding" allies do not meet their defense spending commitments.
Lithuania's coalition agreement commits the government to strengthening air defense, supporting Ukraine and its integration into the EU and NATO, and continuing to spend at least 5% of gross domestic product on defense, one of the highest rates in the alliance.
On June 6, the Social Democrats voted to remove the populist "Dawn of Nemunas" party, whose leader was convicted of anti-Semitism, from the coalition government after the party voted against the government's plan to establish a military base near Belarus.
The new coalition is expected to hold 75 seats in the 141-seat parliament.
The next elections in Lithuania are scheduled to take place in 2028.
Lithuanian government plans to resign next week due to coalition reshuffle18.06.26, 02:15