Landsbergis should be Lithuania's No. 1 choice for EU commissioner – MP

VILNIUS – Gabrielius Landsbergis, Lithuania's foreign minister and chairman of the ruling conservative Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats (HU-LCD), is the government's top candidate to become the country's next European commissioner, Paulius Saudargas, the conservative vice-speaker of the parliament, said on Wednesday. 

“Of course, Plan A and our number-one choice is Gabrielius Landsbergis,” he told the Ziniu Radijas radio station.

According to the MP, this decision was made long ago.

"I believe the government will start this process with that proposal. We hope everything will go smoothly," he said.

Saudargas added that that any other considerations, such as the potential candidacies of Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte or Viktorija Cmilyte-Nielsen, speaker of the parliament, are speculative.

The HU-LCD won last Sunday's European Parliament elections in Lithuania, securing three out of the country's 11 seats. The opposition Lithuanian Social Democratic Party (LSDP) came in second with two seats.

Simonyte said on Monday that she had no intention of applying to become a member of the EU's executive body.

Lithuania's nominee will have to be approved by the government, the parliament and the president, with the final decision on all candidates to be made by the European Parliament.

Virginijus Sinkevicius, Lithuania' current European commissioner, is responsible for environment, oceans and fisheries.