Lithuanian defence minister resigns over defence spending dispute

Lithuanian defence minister Dovile Šakaliene resigned this week following an internal government dispute over the Baltic country’s defence budget.

Šakaliene told reporters on Tuesday she intended to resign over the dispute, and the resignation was confirmed on Wednesday morning.

Lithuanian media LRT reported that Šakaliene and the country’s new prime minister, Inga Ruginienė, disagreed over the 2026 budget earmarked for defence.

At the last NATO summit in June, nearly all member states agreed to increase their military expenditure to 5% of GDP by 2035, including 3.5% for traditional defence.

Lithuania plans to spend over 5% of its GDP on defense starting in 2026. However, disagreements over the total amount of defense spending and what portion of that should go for dual-use projects have continued to dominate conversations in Vilnius.

Šakaliene was outspoken in her support for greater defence spending not only at home but also at the European level.

Ahead of the European Commission’s launch of its Defence Readiness Roadmap, Euractiv reported that Šakaliene supported the ideas included in the plan, but was critical of the lack of allocated funding. 

“We have a lot of different names for a lot of different formats. I wish we’d have as much money. That would be much more helpful,” Šakalienė said ahead of a dinner of European defence ministers.

Šakalienė formally submitted her resignation on Wednesday at 10:00 am local time, according to a post on social media.

Lithuanian officials are now seeking a permanent replacement for Šakalienė, but Vladislav Kondratovič, the current minister of interior, has been appointed as her interim successor, LRT reports.

UPDATE: This story has been updated to include the time of Šakalienė’s official resignation.

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