Butkevicius: Lithuania does not need euro referendum

  • 2013-03-07

VILNIUS – “Lithuania decided to adopt euro as it entered the European Union and now it does not need a referendum on the introduction,” Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevicius said in an interview with radio Ziniu Radijas this morning.

“There is no fear and no need for any kind of referendum because in our accession treaty to the EU we have committed ourselves to have the euro,” he said.

The prime minister also stressed that currently the national currency litas is pegged with euro which means that Lithuania already de facto has the euro. But while it is not yet introduced, such pegging only aggravates the export and import conditions, Butkevicius said.

As another advantage of the euro he said that it would allow getting loans for lower interest.