„As far as Gabrielius Landsbergis is concerned, however, I think it would be difficult for him. We see, and our coalition partners tell us that they are not going to vote and support the Chairman of the main party for such a position if he were to run for it,“ Skvernelis told Žinių Radijas, noting that the Conservative leader's candidacy has also been viewed sceptically by the Liberals.
The MEP thinks that President Gitanas Nausėda may also oppose Landsbergis' candidacy.
„The President is also very sceptical about Gabrielius Landsbergis. It may be one wish, but the possibilities are completely different“, he said.
The politician stresses that much will also depend on when the new EC president is confirmed. According to Skvernelis, if this is done in the autumn, the new ruling majority may have to present its representative to the EC.
„There is no need to rush; wait for the new elections, and then it will probably be easier to talk about a new Commissioner“, he said.
The Freedom Party has previously expressed doubts about Landsbergis' candidacy for the European Commission (EK). In autumn last year, the news portal delfi.lt wrote about a plan approved by the Freedom Party's board, which discussed what to do if the coalition partners did not correctly support the Civil Union Bill, which is particularly important for the Libertarians. The document states that if the law's adoption fails, the Freedom Party „may be forced“ to block all candidates for the EC put forward by TS-LKD. Politico's influential publication recently published potential candidates for the new EC, including Mr Landsbergis. He is said to be targeting the Commissioner's portfolio on foreign policy issues.
There has already been speculation in the public domain that Landsbergis will likely be named the most realistic candidate to replace the outgoing Commissioner for Environment and Oceans, Virginijus Sinkevičius.
However, Landsbergis has not yet given a concrete answer, commenting on November's rumours that this was not a significant issue for him. The Government proposes the nomination of the Commissioner in agreement with the President and the Seimas.
