On October 6, Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene arrived in Kyiv on her first official visit since taking office. She met with Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko and commemorated Ukrainians who have fallen in the Russian-Ukrainian war at the Wall of Remembrance.
Before becoming head of government, Inga Ruginiene served as Minister of Social Security and Labor, and for many years defended workers’ rights as leader of the Lithuanian Trade Union Confederation and as Vice President of the European Trade Union Confederation. On August 26, 2025, the Seimas approved her candidacy for the post of Prime Minister. At that time, Ruginiene promised that one of her first visits would be to Ukraine and she had kept her word. Her ties to Ukraine are not only political but also personal: her grandmother was born in the Donetsk region, and as a child she often spent summers in Kramatorsk.
Ukrinform spoke with the Lithuanian prime minister about whether her government remains steadfast in its commitment to support Ukraine despite Russia’s destabilization attempts, Lithuania’s plans to adopt Ukrainian experience in countering Russian drones, and new threats posed by Russia and Belarus to the Baltic States.
THERE IS NO DOUBT ABOUT SUPPORT FOR UKRAINE FROM OUR SIDE
– On the night of October 5-6, the airport in Vilnius was closed during an attack of balloons used by smugglers from Belarus, and we saw Russian drone attacks against Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Germany, and many other countries. How is Lithuania reacting to them, and do you consider this an escalation from Russia?
– We understand all the risks that we are facing, and we see anxiousness and concern in Lithuanian society. And if we’re talking about the events of yesterday [the interview was held on October 6], there were air balloons with smuggled cigarettes. These processes are affecting our everyday life. Russian drones violating our airspace show that the war is not somewhere far away, the war is close to us, and it means that there is no other option than to be with you. Supporting Ukraine is the most important thing that can be done.
– We have seen the results of the elections in the Czech Republic recently, when the pro-Russian forces came to power, and in Lithuania, in 2024, we saw that Populist Party “Dawn of Nemunas” entered the parliament, taking the third place. So do you see a further risk now that pro-Russian forces may gain more power in Lithuania, and how strong now is the support for Ukraine?
– I think that Russia is constantly looking for opportunities and weak spots. But I am very glad that it finds this difficult. If we’re talking about Lithuania, there is absolute support for Ukraine, and if one or another politician decides to push with another opinion, he will lose all the support. I’m very happy that, for example, in Moldova, the election results showed that people want a free country, people want to be a part of Europe, and everyone remembers what it means to be together with Russia.
– This support is really important for Ukrainians and when we hear that a certain ex-minister is not sure about the sovereignty of Ukraine, it really hits Ukrainians on people’s level.
– There is no doubt about support for Ukraine from our side, you can be sure about that. Some people are trying to do everything just to lower down our support, but I can assure you that it is very strong and despite all these tries, we are planning to continue our support. I talked to your prime minister about the energy sector and we already set the plan on how can we help.
So, there is no doubt. I know that your country and your people know very well what disinformation is and that is why you are very strong.
THE NEXT STEP FOR RUSSIA WILL BE BALTIC COUNTRIES AND POLAND
– That actually leads to my next question. Do you see that the hybrid threats from Russia have changed in recent years, and what are the main threats now?
– I would not say that they change. I think they do it for a long time, but with Lithuanians it’s hard to do because we don’t have a big Russian community, and from that point we differ from, for example, Latvia. But still we can see a lot of trying and, of course, drones, it’s a new reality. That’s why we invest in our defense so much, and that’s why we understand that the next step [for Russia] will be Baltic countries and Poland.
– Recently, as a response to certain drone attacks from Russia, Denmark invited Ukrainian drone operators as instructors or to train and to just support and help. Do our countries also plan further development in this area of drones?
– We are very interested in the defense industry, and we think that this is a new reality which we have to face, and we will speak with the president about that, and we see big collaboration opportunities in this area. We don’t have any choice, because we are not the same as it was five or ten years ago. So that’s why I am so happy that Europe is changing. Of course, we have some different perspectives in the south part, which feels very safe, but not in the east and north part. We have to invest in defense, we have to invest in our people, we have to invest in your victory, and this is the future.
– As far as I know, you have part of Ukrainian roots and even spent some time as a child in Kramatorsk. Could you please tell us more about this?
– Oh, these are one of the nicest moments in my life. Especially in summertime, when you have cherries, when you have mulberry, right? And I remember that my great-grandmother always made “varenyky” with cherries – which is the most delicious dish for me. And I remember from that time that in Ukraine, what I was impressed was very warm people. And for me, it was a surprise thing that you can go into the yard and a lot of people sitting around, they are talking, they are sharing their minds. And at that time, we lived in Soviet Union times, but still Ukraine showed that the local communities can be very strong and very, very close.
Maybe this is the reason why you are going to win, why you are so strong and you can stand against aggression, because you as a society are very close to each other. Before the full-scale war, I used to come to Kyiv very often, because we had a lot of friends here. So, I always say that when I come to Ukraine, I feel like at home, because we have a lot of common things. And you don’t feel that you came to a foreign country.
– Thank you so much.
Anna Kostiuchenko, Kyiv
Photo credit: Hennadii Minchenko / Ukrinform
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