“It would have been a great honor to serve as Lithuania's European commissioner, but I will continue to serve my country, support Ukraine and fight for the future of Europe in other ways,” Landsbergis said on X.
He asked Šimonytė to suggest another candidate for the president to consider.
Landsbergis rose to international prominence by lobbying Western countries and the United States to maximise support for Kyiv in the wake of a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Vilnius is looking to expand EU membership, Ukraine's main agenda for the next five years, according to a Lithuanian official who spoke on condition of anonymity to reveal the plans.
EU member states have until August 30 to nominate their candidates to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, a European Commission spokesman said.
In an emailed statement to Politico, the White House said no formal nomination for the commissioner position had been made to the president by the administration.
“The president and the prime minister informally discussed an extensive list of candidates in order to identify the most suitable candidates,” the office's press team said, adding that Nauseda was “confident” Lithuania would meet the deadline for nominating committee members.
