Инга Ругинене. Фото: x.com/IRuginiene
Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginienė, who is set to leave office as head of government, has confirmed that she will return to the Ministry of Social Security and Labour, which she led before being appointed prime minister, BNS reports.
“I want to return to where my heart has always been. I see this as a natural rotation and a very important stage of my life. When I was needed during a difficult period, I was not afraid to take responsibility. And today I feel at peace,” Ruginienė said in an interview with Lietuvos rytas.
Ruginienė served as minister of social security and labour in the government of Gintautas Paluckas. After his resignation last autumn, she became prime minister. The ministry is currently headed by Jūratė Zailskienė, who said this week that she remains at work and declined to comment on her future plans.
Among the most important decisions during her tenure as prime minister, Ruginienė cited allocating 5.38% of the country’s GDP to defence, strengthening air defence capabilities and combating cigarette smuggling using weather balloons.
Mindaugas Sinkevičius, leader of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party, will take on the role of prime minister in the new coalition government. The Cabinet is expected to resign on June 23.
As previously reported, a new ruling coalition has been formed in Lithuania. The new government will be made up of the Social Democratic Party, the Democratic Union “For Lithuania,” and the Union of Lithuanian Peasants, Greens and Christian Families. The Social Democrats had earlier ruled out a coalition with the Dawn of Nemunas party.