Lithuania PM urges politicians to stop interfering in embassy work in US

KARMELAVA, KAUNAS DISTRICT - Lithuanian Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevicius on Wednesday urged politicians to stop interfering in the work of the country's embassy in the US.

The call follows reports on Wednesday that opposition conservatives were attempting to organise informal talks with staff at the Washington-based mission to discuss the performance of Ambassador Gediminas Varvuolis.

"Someone is politically inspiring or perhaps inciting reactions and appeals. (...) It is vital for us to maintain our strategic partnership with the US. Internal perturbations and conflicts do not bring credit to us as a state, nor do they improve our relations. Therefore, I would suggest that while politicians should not ignore situations that may exist and should investigate them, they must not interfere in their escalation," the prime minister told reporters.

It was reported that an invitation for a discussion with members of the opposition Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats, sent by Deputy Chair of the Seimas Foreign Affairs Committee Zygimantas Pavilionis and former Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte, reached the entire embassy staff. Individual staff members were reportedly used to disseminate the information.

Varvuolis said he was unaware of such invitations from politicians, while the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed it had information about attempts by conservative lawmakers to hold informal talks with Washington embassy staff.

Pavilionis confirmed he had been in contact with embassy staff, who he said had mentioned Varvuolis' performance during conversations. Meanwhile, Simonyte denied reports of any potential talks, emphasising that she had "not communicated directly with embassy staff for a considerable time."

The prime minister said potential conflicts within the embassy should be resolved by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs rather than political parties. He noted that the ministry employs an inspector-official responsible for investigating such situations.

Last week, Delfi reported that some embassy employees had approached the Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding what they described as the ambassador's disrespectful behaviour, shouting and long working hours. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it was evaluating the public information and would decide within five working days whether to launch a formal investigation.

Varvuolis has served as Lithuania's ambassador to the US since August 1, 2025.