Lithuania's prospective ruling coalition partners are aiming to finalise their coalition agreement on Friday, although key questions, including distribution of ministerial posts and the future of the prime minister, remain unresolved.
Representatives of the Social Democrats, the Union of Democrats "For Lithuania" and the Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union have been negotiating the terms of a new governing coalition following the decision to replace the Nemunas Dawn party in the ruling bloc.
Lukas Savickas of the Democrats said negotiators had spent Friday drafting the final version of the coalition agreement based on political decisions reached earlier in the week.
"We have been working since 9 am trying to turn the strategic agreements reached yesterday into a coherent coalition agreement," Savickas told reporters. "We hope to complete the text today."
According to Savickas, discussions are currently focused on policy commitments rather than the distribution of ministerial posts. He confirmed that the Democrats are expected to receive three ministries, although specific portfolios have yet to be discussed.
Questions surrounding government positions are expected to be addressed next week. Among the most significant unresolved issues is whether Lithuania will have a new prime minister.
The Social Democrats have not yet decided whether the head of government should be replaced. Deputy Speaker of the Seimas Orinta Leiputė said the matter remained under consideration.
"This question remains open for now, and we have not yet made a decision," she told reporters.
Virginijus Sinkevičius, acting chairman of the Democrats, has previously described a decision by Social Democratic leader Mindaugas Sinkevičius on whether to seek the premiership as one of the key issues in the coalition negotiations.
Leiputė stressed that the current government continues to function effectively and said there was no reason for the Social Democrats to oppose its work. She also suggested coalition partners should not seek to dictate decisions to the largest party in the alliance.
While the prime minister's future remains uncertain, Leiputė said one issue had already been settled.
"There will certainly be no changes regarding the Speaker of the Seimas. This has been agreed and publicly stated," she said.
The post is currently held by Social Democrat Juozas Olekas, who was appointed Speaker in September last year following an earlier reshuffle of the ruling majority.
Negotiators have also been discussing the coalition's policy agenda. Savickas said agreement had been reached on proposals to strengthen demographic policy, including measures aimed at supporting families.
Democrat MP Linas Kukuraitis said the coalition agreement would maintain a strong focus on family policy, including compensation mechanisms linked to childcare benefits and the expansion of childcare and non-formal education services.
Meanwhile, Aušrinė Norkienė of the Farmers and Greens Union said the coalition would retain an annex from the previous agreement listing issues on which her party may take a different position. These include civil partnerships, reproductive health policy and certain education-related matters.
The coalition reshuffle follows growing tensions between the governing parties and Nemunas Dawn, particularly over parliamentary voting and public statements made by the party's leader, Remigijus Žemaitaitis.
The current ruling coalition controls 80 seats in the 141-member Seimas. A new majority formed by the Social Democrats, Democrats and Farmers and Greens Union would hold 75 seats.
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