Lithuania election winner pledges at least 3.5% of GDP for defence

By Andrius Sytas

VILNIUS (Reuters) - Lithuania's incoming Social Democratic government will target defence spending of at least 3.5% of its gross domestic product, the party's leader said on Monday.

The Baltic country of 2.9 million people which neighbours Russia will spend about 3% of GDP on its armed forces this year, according to NATO estimates, making it the military alliance's sixth-biggest spender as a share of its economy.

Three-quarters of Lithuanians think Russia could attack their country in the near future, a Baltijos Tyrimai/ELTA opinion poll found in May, following its attack on Ukraine in 2022.

"Our election manifesto says that it should be not less than 3.5%, and this is unavoidable ... security and defence will receive as much money as needed," Social Democrat leader Vilija Blinkeviciute told reporters after her party's landslide election victory on Sunday.

She pledged continuity with the outgoing centre-left government of Homeland Union in foreign, security, and defence policies.

Lithuania was among the harshest critics of Russia and supporters of Ukraine in the European Union and NATO under the outgoing government.

China downgraded its diplomatic ties with Lithuania in 2021, introduced trade barriers and pressured a multinational to drop Lithuanian parts after the it allowed Taiwan to open a de-facto embassy in its capitol Vilnius.

Social Democrats won 52 seats in the 141-member parliament in elections on Sunday dominated by frustration with the cost of living and worries over potential threats from Russia.

The Homeland Union received 28 seats. Gabrielius Landsbergis, its leader and the foreign minister, said on Monday he was resigning the chairmanship and will not serve in the next parliament.

The elected parliament will first meet in mid-November and the government will be formed and take oath by mid-December.

(Reporting by Andrius Sytas in Vilnius. Editing by Stine Jacobsen and Toby Chopra)