Lithuanian Prime Minister Palutskas resigned due to doubts over business transactions

Lithuanian Prime Minister Palutskas announced his resignation on Thursday (July 31).

Xinhua News Agency quoted local Lithuanian media reports as saying that Gintautas Paluckas informed the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party of his decision to resign on the same day. In a statement released by the Social Democratic Party, he said: "Given that these incited scandals are hindering the government's work, I believe I cannot allow our ruling coalition and cabinet to be subject to these scandals." Therefore, I decided to make a decision quickly and confidently.

According to sources within the Social Democratic Party, Palutskas will also step down as the party's chairperson.

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said on the same day that Palutskas had informed him of his decision to resign and said that Palutskas had made the only correct decision.

The Speaker of the Lithuanian Parliament, Skvernelis, said that Palutskas' departure was "a logical but too late move".

According to local media reports, Palutskas has resigned as prime minister and chairperson of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party due to growing doubts about his business and past experiences.

The opposition party in Lithuania criticized a company jointly owned by Palutskas and others for selling batteries to a company owned by his in-laws, and the funds for this transaction came from a government agency.

Palutskas has been denying any wrongdoing in recent weeks.

Mazvydas Jastramskis, a political analyst at the Institute of International Relations and Political Sciences in Vilnius, pointed out that the next prime minister will be elected by the Social Democratic Party of Palutskas, which holds 52 out of 141 seats in the parliament.

The head of government is appointed by a majority vote in the parliament. The Social Democratic Party will find it very difficult to win the support of the center-left Lithuanian Union and the populist Neiman Dawn Party, which are at odds with each other in its two ruling alliances.

Reuters quoted Astramskis as saying, "Other political parties do not seem to be in a hurry to join the government."