Prime Minister of Lithuania | |
---|---|
Lietuvos ministras pirmininkas (Lithuanian) | |
Government of Lithuania | |
Style | Madam Prime Minister (informal) Her Excellency (diplomatic) |
Type | Head of government |
Status | Šimonytė is currently acting as Prime Minister until Gintautas Paluckas is officially sworn in |
Appointer | President |
Term length | 4 years No term limit |
Formation | 11 November 1918 |
First holder | Augustinas Voldemaras |
Abolished | 1940–1991 |
Salary | €6,000 per month [1] |
Website | Official website |
The prime minister of Lithuania (Lithuanian : Lietuvos ministras pirmininkas) is the head of government of Lithuania. The prime minister is appointed by the president with the assent of the Lithuanian parliament, the Seimas. The modern office of prime minister was established in 1990, when Lithuania declared its independence, although the official title was "Chairperson of the Council of Ministers" until 25 November 1992.
Historically, the title of prime minister was also used between 1918 and 1940. This was during the original Republic of Lithuania, which lasted from the collapse of the Russian Empire until the country's annexation by the Soviet Union.
No. | Portrait | Name (born–died) | Term of office [2] | Political party | Government | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Took office | Left office | Time in office | ||||||
1 | Augustinas Voldemaras (1883–1942) 1st time | 11 November 1918 | 26 December 1918 | 45 days | Party of National Progress | Voldemaras I | ||
2 | Mykolas Sleževičius (1882–1939) 1st time | 26 December 1918 | 5 March 1919 | 69 days | Peasant Union | Sleževičius I | ||
3 | Pranas Dovydaitis (1886–1942) | 13 March 1919 | 12 April 1919 | 38 days | Lithuanian Christian Democratic Party | Dovydaitis | ||
(2) | Mykolas Sleževičius (1882–1939) 2nd time | 12 April 1919 | 2 October 1919 | 173 days | Peasant Union | Sleževičius II | ||
4 | Ernestas Galvanauskas (1882–1967) 1st time | 7 October 1919 | 15 June 1920 | 252 days | Independent | Galvanauskas I | ||
5 | Kazys Grinius (1866–1950) | 19 June 1920 | 18 January 1922 | 1 year, 213 days | Lithuanian Popular Peasants' Union | Grinius | ||
(4) | Ernestas Galvanauskas (1882–1967) 2nd time | 2 February 1922 | 17 June 1924 | 2 years, 136 days | Independent | Galvanauskas II–III–IV | ||
6 | Antanas Tumėnas (1880–1946) | 18 June 1924 | 27 January 1925 | 223 days | Lithuanian Christian Democratic Party | Tumėnas | ||
7 | Vytautas Petrulis (1890–1942) | 4 February 1925 | 19 September 1925 | 227 days | Farmers' Association | Petrulis | ||
8 | Leonas Bistras (1890–1971) | 25 September 1925 | 31 May 1926 | 248 days | Lithuanian Christian Democratic Party | Bistras | ||
(2) | Mykolas Sleževičius (1882–1939) 3rd time | 15 June 1926 | 17 December 1926 | 185 days | Lithuanian Popular Peasants' Union | Sleževičius III | ||
(1) | Augustinas Voldemaras (1883–1942) 2nd time | 17 December 1926 | 19 September 1929 | 2 years, 276 days | Lithuanian Nationalist Union | Voldemaras II | ||
9 | Juozas Tūbelis (1882–1939) | 23 September 1929 | 24 March 1938 | 8 years, 182 days | Lithuanian Nationalist Union | Tūbelis I–II–III | ||
10 | Vladas Mironas (1880–1953) | 24 March 1938 | 28 March 1939 | 1 year, 4 days | Lithuanian Nationalist Union | Mironas I–II | ||
11 | Jonas Černius (1898–1977) | 28 March 1939 | 21 November 1939 | 238 days | Lithuanian Nationalist Union | Černius | ||
12 | Antanas Merkys (1887–1955) | 21 November 1939 | 15 June 1940 | 207 days | Lithuanian Nationalist Union | Merkys |
Following the ultimatum in June 1940, the forces of Soviet Union entered Lithuania, prompting President Antanas Smetona to flee the country. Antanas Merkys, who assumed the position of acting president in accordance with the constitution, soon announced he had taken over the Presidency on a permanent basis and appointed Justas Paleckis, favored by the Soviet authorities, as the Prime Minister ahead of the "people's government". Merkys soon resigned, allowing Paleckis to assume the post of acting president as well. [3] The presidency of Merkys is not recognized as legitimate in modern Lithuania [4] and Paleckis is not listed as an interwar Prime Minister in government sources. [2]
No. | Portrait | Name (born–died) | Term of office | Political party | Government | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Took office | Left office | Time in office | ||||||
– | Justas Paleckis (1899–1980) | 17 June 1940 | 24 June 1940 | 7 days | Communist Party of Lithuania | |||
– | Vincas Krėvė-Mickevičius (1882–1954) | 24 June 1940 | 1 July 1940 | 7 days | Communist Party of Lithuania | People's Government |
No. | Portrait | Name (born–died) | Term of office | Political party | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Took office | Left office | Time in office | |||||
Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the Lithuanian SSR | |||||||
1 | Mečislovas Gedvilas (1901–1981) (in exile in the Russian SFSR 1941–1944) | 25 August 1940 | 2 April 1946 | 5 years, 220 days | Communist Party of Lithuania | ||
Chairmen of the Council of Ministers of the Lithuanian SSR | |||||||
1 | Mečislovas Gedvilas (1901–1981) | 2 April 1946 | 16 January 1956 | 9 years, 289 days | Communist Party of Lithuania | ||
2 | Motiejus Šumauskas (1905–1982) | 16 January 1956 | 14 April 1967 | 11 years, 88 days | Communist Party of Lithuania | ||
3 | Juozas Maniušis (1910–1987) | 14 April 1967 | 16 January 1981 | 13 years, 277 days | Communist Party of Lithuania | ||
4 | Ringaudas Songaila (1929–2019) | 16 January 1981 | 18 November 1985 | 4 years, 306 days | Communist Party of Lithuania | ||
5 | Vytautas Sakalauskas (1933–2001) | 18 November 1985 | 17 March 1990 | 4 years, 119 days | Communist Party of Lithuania |
No. | Portrait | Name (born–died) | Term of office | Government | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Took office | Left office | Time in office | ||||
– | Juozas Ambrazevičius (1903–1974) acting | 23 June 1941 | 5 August 1941 | 43 days | Provisional Government |
From 11 March 1990 after adopting the Act of the Re-Establishment of the State of Lithuania.
Political parties and affiliations: Sąjūdis LDDP TS / TS-LKD LLS LSDP LVŽS
No. | Portrait | Name (born–died) | Term of office | Political party | Government coalition | Seimas | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Took office | Left office | Time in office | |||||||
1 | Kazimira Danutė Prunskienė (born 1943) | 17 March 1990 | 10 January 1991 | 299 days | Independent (endorsed by Sąjūdis) | Prunskienė Sąjūdis | Supreme Council – Reconstituent Seimas (1990) | ||
2 | Albertas Šimėnas (born 1950) | 10 January 1991 | 13 January 1991 | 3 days | Independent (endorsed by Sąjūdis) | Šimėnas Sąjūdis | |||
3 | Gediminas Vagnorius (born 1957) | 13 January 1991 | 21 July 1992 | 1 year, 190 days | Independent (endorsed by Sąjūdis) | Vagnorius I Sąjūdis | |||
4 | Aleksandras Abišala (born 1955) | 21 July 1992 | 26 November 1992 | 128 days | Independent (endorsed by Sąjūdis) | Abišala Sąjūdis | |||
5 | Bronislovas Lubys (1938–2011) | 12 December 1992 | 10 March 1993 | 88 days | Independent (endorsed by Democratic Labour Party) | Lubys LDDP | 6 (1992) | ||
6 | Adolfas Šleževičius (1948–2022) | 10 March 1993 | 8 February 1996 | 2 years, 335 days | Democratic Labour Party (LDDP) | Šleževičius LDDP | |||
7 | Laurynas Mindaugas Stankevičius (1935–2017) | 23 February 1996 | 19 November 1996 | 270 days | Democratic Labour Party (LDDP) | Stankevičius LDDP | |||
(3) | Gediminas Vagnorius (born 1957) | 4 December 1996 | 3 May 1999 | 2 years, 150 days | Homeland Union (TS-LKD) | Vagnorius II TS–LKDP | 7 (1996) | ||
8 | Rolandas Paksas (born 1956) | 1 June 1999 | 27 October 1999 | 148 days | Homeland Union (TS-LKD) | Paksas I TS–LKDP | |||
– | Irena Degutienė (born 1949) acting | 27 October 1999 | 3 November 1999 | 7 days | Homeland Union (TS-LKD) | Paksas I TS–LKDP | |||
9 | Andrius Kubilius (born 1956) | 3 November 1999 | 19 October 2000 | 351 days | Homeland Union (TS-LKD) | Kubilius I TS–LKDP | |||
(8) | Rolandas Paksas (born 1956) | 27 October 2000 | 20 June 2001 | 236 days | Liberal Union of Lithuania (LLS) | Paksas II LLS-NS-LCS-MKDS-LLRA | 8 (2000) | ||
– | Eugenijus Gentvilas (born 1960) acting | 20 June 2001 | 4 July 2001 | 14 days | Liberal Union of Lithuania (LLS) | Paksas II LLS-NS-LCS-MKDS-LLRA | |||
10 | Algirdas Brazauskas (1932–2010) | 4 July 2001 | 1 June 2006 | 4 years, 332 days | Social Democrats (LSDP) | Brazauskas I LSDP-NS | |||
Brazauskas II LSDP–DP-LVNDS-NS (2004–2006) LSDP–DP-LVNDS (2006) LSDP (2006) | 9 (2004) | ||||||||
– | Zigmantas Balčytis (born 1953) acting | 1 June 2006 | 18 July 2006 | 47 days | Social Democrats (LSDP) | Brazauskas II LSDP | |||
11 | Gediminas Kirkilas (1951–2024) | 6 July 2006 | 17 November 2008 | 2 years, 134 days | Social Democrats (LSDP) | Kirkilas LSDP-LVNDS-PDP-LiCS (2006–2007) LSDP (2006–2008) LSDP-LVNDS-LiCS-PDP-NS (2008) | |||
(9) | Andrius Kubilius (born 1956) | 9 December 2008 | 13 December 2012 | 4 years, 4 days | Homeland Union (TS-LKD) | Kubilius II TS-LKD-TPP-LRLS-LiCS (2008–2009 and 2010–2011) TS-LKD-TPP-LRLS-LiCS-Parliamentary Group "One Lithuania" (2009–2010) TS-LKD-LRLS-LiCS (2011–2012) | 10 (2008) | ||
12 | Algirdas Butkevičius (born 1958) | 13 December 2012 | 13 December 2016 | 4 years, 0 days | Social Democratic Party of Lithuania (LSDP) | Butkevičius LSDP-DP-TT-LLRA (2012–2014) LSDP-DP-TT (2014–2016) | 11 (2012) | ||
13 | Saulius Skvernelis (born 1970) | 13 December 2016 | 11 December 2020 | 3 years, 364 days | Independent (endorsed by Farmers and Greens Union) | Skvernelis LVŽS-LSDP (2016–2017) LVŽS (2017–2018) LVŽS-LSDDP (2018–2019) LVŽS-LSDDP-LLRA-KŠS-TT (2019) LVŽS-LSDDP-LLRA-KŠS (2019–2020) | 12 (2016) | ||
14 | Ingrida Šimonytė (born 1974) | 11 December 2020 | Incumbent | 3 years, 354 days | Homeland Union (TS-LKD) | Šimonytė TS-LKD-LRLS-LP | 13 (2020) | ||
15 | Gintautas Paluckas (born 1979) | TBD | – | Social Democratic Party of Lithuania (LSDP) | Paluckas LSDP-PPNA-DSVL | 14 (2024) |
Antanas Smetona was a Lithuanian intellectual, journalist and politician who served as the first president of Lithuania from 1919 to 1920 and again from 1926 as a de facto dictator until the Soviet occupation of Lithuania in 1940. Referred to as the "Leader of the Nation" during his presidency, Smetona is recognised as one of the most important Lithuanian political figures between World War I and World War II, and a prominent ideologist of Lithuanian nationalism and the movement for national revival.
Augustinas Voldemaras was a Lithuanian nationalist political figure. He briefly served as the country's first prime minister in 1918 and continued serving as the minister of foreign affairs until 1920, representing the fledgling Lithuanian state at the Versailles Peace Conference and the League of Nations. After some time in academia, Voldemaras returned to politics in 1926, when he was elected to the Third Seimas.
The Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic, also known as Soviet Lithuania or simply Lithuania, was de facto one of the constituent republics of the Soviet Union between 1940–1941 and 1944–1990. After 1946, its territory and borders mirrored those of today's Republic of Lithuania, with the exception of minor adjustments to its border with Belarus.
Antanas Merkys was the last Prime Minister of independent Lithuania, serving from November 1939 to June 1940. When the Soviet Union presented an ultimatum to Lithuania demanding that it accept a Soviet garrison, President Antanas Smetona fled the country leaving Merkys as acting president. Merkys ostensibly cooperated with the Soviets, and illegally took over the presidency in his own right. After three days, Merkys handed power to Justas Paleckis, who formed the People's Government of Lithuania. When Merkys attempted to flee the country, he was captured and deported to the interior of Russia, where he died in 1955.
Justas Paleckis was a Lithuanian Soviet author, journalist and politician. He was nominal acting president of Lithuania after the Soviet invasion while Lithuania was still ostensibly independent, in office from 17 June to 3 August 1940. He then remained the head of state of the Lithuanian SSR until 1967.
The Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania defines the legal foundation for all laws passed in the Republic of Lithuania. The first constitution of the contemporary republic was enacted on 1 August 1922. The current constitution was adopted in a referendum on 25 October 1992.
Vladimir Georgievich Dekanozov was a Soviet senior state security operative and diplomat.
The People's Seimas was a puppet legislature organized in order to give legal sanction the occupation and annexation of Lithuania by the Soviet Union. After the Soviet ultimatum in June 1940, a new pro-Soviet government was formed, known as the People's Government. The new government dismissed the Fourth Seimas and announced elections to the People's Seimas. The elections were heavily rigged, and resulted in a chamber composed entirely of Communists and Communist sympathizers. The new parliament unanimously adopted a resolution proclaiming the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic and petitioned for admission to the Soviet Union as a constituent republic. The Supreme Soviet of the USSR accepted the Lithuanian petition on 3 August 1940. The People's Seimas adopted a new constitution, a close copy of the 1936 Soviet Constitution, on 25 August and renamed itself to the Supreme Soviet of the Lithuanian SSR.
Stasys Raštikis was a Lithuanian military officer, ultimately obtaining the rank of divisional general. He was the commander of the Lithuanian Army from September 21, 1934, to April 23, 1940.
The Act of the Re-Establishment of the State of Lithuania or Act of 11 March was an independence declaration by Lithuania adopted on 11 March 1990, signed by all members of the Supreme Council of the Republic of Lithuania led by Sąjūdis. The act emphasized restoration and legal continuity of the interwar-period Lithuania, which was occupied by the Soviet Union and annexed in June 1940. In March 1990, it was the first of the 15 Soviet republics to declare independence, with the rest following to continue for 21 months, concluding with Kazakhstan's independence in 1991. These events led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991.
The three Baltic countries, or the Baltic states – Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania – are held to have continued as independent states under international law while under Soviet occupation from 1940 to 1991, as well as during the German occupation in 1941–1944/1945. The prevailing opinion accepts the Baltic thesis that the Soviet occupation was illegal, and all actions of the Soviet Union related to the occupation are regarded as contrary to international law in general and to the bilateral treaties between the USSR and the three Baltic countries in particular.
The 1926 Lithuanian coup d'état was a military coup d'état in Lithuania that replaced the democratically elected government with a authoritarian regime led by Antanas Smetona. The coup took place on 17 December 1926 and was largely organized by the military; Smetona's role remains the subject of debate. The coup brought the Lithuanian Nationalist Union, the most conservative party at the time, to power. Previously it had been a fairly new and insignificant nationalistic party. By 1926, its membership reached about 2,000 and it had won only three seats in the parliamentary elections. The Lithuanian Christian Democratic Party, the largest party in the Seimas at the time, collaborated with the military and provided constitutional legitimacy to the coup, but accepted no major posts in the new government and withdrew in May 1927. After the military handed power over to the civilian government, it ceased playing a direct role in political life.
The Soviet Union issued an ultimatum to Lithuania before midnight of June 14, 1940. The Soviets, using a formal pretext, demanded that an unspecified number of Soviet soldiers be allowed to enter the Lithuanian territory and that a new pro-Soviet government be formed. The ultimatum and subsequent incorporation of Lithuania into the Soviet Union stemmed from the division of Eastern Europe into the German and Soviet spheres of influence agreed in the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of August 1939. Lithuania, along with Latvia and Estonia, fell into the Soviet sphere. According to the Soviet–Lithuanian Mutual Assistance Treaty of October 1939, Lithuania agreed to allow some 20,000 Soviets troops to be stationed at bases within Lithuania in exchange for receiving a portion of the Vilnius Region. Further Soviet actions to establish its dominance in its sphere of influence were delayed by the Winter War with Finland and resumed in spring 1940 when Germany was making rapid advances in western Europe. Despite the threat to the country's independence, Lithuanian authorities did little to plan for contingencies and were unprepared for the ultimatum.
The timeline of the occupation of the Baltic states lists key events in the military occupation of the three countries – Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – by the Soviet Union and by Nazi Germany during World War II.
Kazys Skučas was a Lithuanian politician and General of the Lithuanian Army. Skučas was the last Minister of the Interior of independent Lithuania. He was a target of anti-Lithuanian Soviet propaganda in the days leading to the 1940 Soviet ultimatum and occupation of Lithuania. Right after the Red Army invaded Lithuania on 15 June 1940, Skučas was directed to leave the country by the then-President Antanas Smetona but was arrested at the border several days later by the then acting Lithuanian President Antanas Merkys and handed over to the Russians, transported to Moscow, and executed in 1941.
The People's Government of Lithuania was a puppet cabinet installed by the Soviet Union in Lithuania immediately after Lithuania's acceptance of the Soviet ultimatum of June 14, 1940. The formation of the cabinet was supervised by Vladimir Dekanozov, deputy of Vyacheslav Molotov and a close associate of Lavrentiy Beria, who selected Justas Paleckis as the prime minister and acting president. The government was formed on June 17 and, together with the People's Seimas (parliament), transitioned independent Lithuania to a socialist republic and the 14th republic of the Soviet Union thus legitimizing the Soviet occupation of Lithuania. The People's Government was replaced by the Council of People's Commissars of the Lithuanian SSR on August 25. Similar transitional People's Governments were formed in Latvia and Estonia.
The Diplomatic Service of the Republic of Lithuania is the part of the governmental service tasked with enforcing the foreign policy set by the President, the Parliament, and the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. The head of the service is the Foreign Minister.
Vincas Vitkauskas was a Lithuanian general. He became commander of the Lithuanian Army after the resignation of Stasys Raštikis in January 1940. In this capacity, Vitkauskas opposed armed resistance to the Soviet occupation in June 1940 and subsequently collaborated with the new Soviet regime.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)