https://www.15min.lt/ en-en Copyright © 2026, 15min.lt Thu, 23 Apr 2026 07:51:36 +0300 Thu, 23 Apr 2026 07:51:36 +0300 15min.lt XML Generator 15min@15min.lt admin@15min.lt https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ramunas-vilpisauskas-the-president-s-achievements-in-brussels-were-modest-530-1587228?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
Several days ago, a regular European Council session was held in Brussels, with Lithuania being represented there by President Gitanas Nausėda. In Lithuania, his statement to journalists about what he considered to be the government’s malicious activities in delaying vaccination in the first half of the summer attracted attention. Meanwhile, the European Council discussed issues of importance to Lithuania on the management of the migration crisis, but only modest progress was made in persuading partners to accept Lithuania’s proposals.
]]> Ramūnas Vilpišauskas Opinion Tue, 26 Oct 2021 05:28:40 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ramunas-vilpisauskas-the-president-s-achievements-in-brussels-were-modest-530-1587228?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/laurynas-jonavicius-will-the-new-german-government-s-foreign-policy-coincide-with-lithuanian-interests-530-1585406?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
All of Europe is anticipating the shape of the new German government. Both European internal political, economic and social processes, as well as the Old Continent’s foreign policy, will, to a great extent, depend on it. One of the challenges, particularly from the Lithuanian perspective, is to make the greatest European power’s foreign policy at least a little more proactive and formative, rather than just reactive. This is important for Lithuania because the compatibility of Vilnius and Berlin’s interests greatly influence the practical success of the implementation of all of Lithuania’s foreign policy priorities. Is this possible and what might Berlin’s new foreign policy look like?
]]> Laurynas Jonavičius Opinion Fri, 22 Oct 2021 01:02:22 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/laurynas-jonavicius-will-the-new-german-government-s-foreign-policy-coincide-with-lithuanian-interests-530-1585406?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/eastern-partnership-beyond-westlessness-a-new-momentum-for-the-european-integration-530-1583304?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
The conclusions made in the 2020 Munich Security Conference (MSC) report on the westlessness phenomena observed in the West and the global world have become very much relevant to our assessment of the recent developments in the EU’s Eastern neighbourhood countries and of the EU’s geopolitics in general. The 2021 MSC report kept this narrative and made one step forward saying that not only the world is becoming less Western; the West itself is becoming less Western, too.
]]> Andrius Kubilius, MEP, Co-chair of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly, former Prime Minister of Lithuania. Ramūnas Stanionis, Policy Advisor to MEP at the European Parliament Opinion Mon, 18 Oct 2021 18:37:24 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/eastern-partnership-beyond-westlessness-a-new-momentum-for-the-european-integration-530-1583304?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ramunas-vilpisauskas-poland-s-conflict-with-the-eu-is-a-threat-to-lithuania-s-interests-530-1579492?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
Last week, the Polish Constitutional Tribunal announced that the Polish Constitution is superior to EU law in judicial system questions. This served to further increase tensions in the already difficult relationship between the Polish ruling bloc and EU institutions. While the likelihood of Poland exiting the EU remains small for now, the mounting conflict presents threats to Lithuanian interests.
]]> Ramūnas Vilpišauskas Opinion Mon, 11 Oct 2021 20:40:30 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ramunas-vilpisauskas-poland-s-conflict-with-the-eu-is-a-threat-to-lithuania-s-interests-530-1579492?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/laurynas-jonavicius-zapad-2021-russian-power-and-problems-530-1568268?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
The Zapad military exercises formally ended for this year. While there was a massive concentration of forces and the exercises themselves were observed with concern in the West, major surprises or provocations were seemingly avoided on the Russian side. Perhaps the most important and least discussed part of these exercises were elements related to Belarus and Ukraine.
]]> Laurynas Jonavičius Opinion Wed, 22 Sep 2021 21:12:58 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/laurynas-jonavicius-zapad-2021-russian-power-and-problems-530-1568268?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/how-are-innovations-changing-traditional-business-strategy-do-not-expect-to-control-the-future-of-business-530-1566470?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
Global business management trends today draw the line where innovation begins – a precondition for long-term business development. As they develop technological capabilities, businesses today are transitioning from a traditional to a digital business model or, in other words, into an open world business model. Business strategies based on it will soon obtain just as many new forms as there are of traditional business strategies. What to prepare for? First, it is necessary to come to terms with the idea that a strictly defined and controlled strategy for the company's future is now a thing of the past, and ahead of us, we have constant adaptation to open innovation challenges presented by the global market.
]]> Kleber Bacili Opinion Fri, 17 Sep 2021 01:31:15 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/how-are-innovations-changing-traditional-business-strategy-do-not-expect-to-control-the-future-of-business-530-1566470?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ramunas-vilpisauskas-prices-are-growing-wages-and-pensions-will-grow-what-about-taxes-530-1564470?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
While public discourse in Lithuania is dominated by questions of identity politics, for a large part of voters, economic and social concerns are more important. Price growth is currently one of the most important elements, particularly for public sector employees whose wages are relatively low. The cabinet plans to increase wages and pensions, but first, it will have to seek financing sources for this, answering the question of tax reform, which is of interest to many.
]]> Ramūnas Vilpišauskas Opinion Tue, 14 Sep 2021 00:04:17 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ramunas-vilpisauskas-prices-are-growing-wages-and-pensions-will-grow-what-about-taxes-530-1564470?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ramunas-vilpisauskas-is-crisis-management-going-to-overshadow-the-ruling-bloc-s-planned-reforms-530-1557864?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
The autumn political season is due to begin soon and it would previously be traditionally dominated by negotiations over next year’s budget. It is likely that this autumn, both the financial planning for the country and the drafting of reforms outlined in the government programme will be overshadowed by crisis management and identity conflicts. The latter will also complicate the broader consensus between parliamentary parties on questions of the country’s strategic development, for example, in terms of education or foreign policy.
]]> Ramūnas Vilpišauskas Opinion Tue, 31 Aug 2021 21:58:38 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ramunas-vilpisauskas-is-crisis-management-going-to-overshadow-the-ruling-bloc-s-planned-reforms-530-1557864?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/how-to-exit-crisis-ammunition-must-match-ambition-530-1552268?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
After 11 March 1990, Lithuania lived for a full thirty years waiting for a miracle. That was to be when Lithuanian memory would be free of the signs of the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic; the “corrupt” people of the Soviet era would die and the “new generation”, which no longer belonged to the Soviet past, would enter the political scene. That then is the Überlithuanian: a spirited guy who sees the world in black and white only and who has all the seas at his feet. And last October the miracle happened - the generation of the new thirties took power in Lithuania.
]]> Algimantas Kasparavicius, Šarūnas Liekis Opinion Thu, 19 Aug 2021 18:57:12 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/how-to-exit-crisis-ammunition-must-match-ambition-530-1552268?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ramunas-vilpisauskas-the-peculiarities-of-political-conflict-in-lithuania-530-1550526?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
The recent public protests in Lithuania show that politics defined by identity conflict are beginning to prevail in the country. While the rhetoric of those speaking up against vaccination often includes the argument of human rights, other beliefs this group postulates, as well as the traditions it holds in common with activists emphasising traditional values, show that an area long dominated in politics after the restoration of independence by the perception of the Soviet past is being redirected toward conflicts between traditional values and ones that emphasise human rights as seen in Western countries. This likely reduces the possibility of constructive dialogue in society.
]]> Ramūnas Vilpišauskas Opinion Tue, 17 Aug 2021 06:42:56 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ramunas-vilpisauskas-the-peculiarities-of-political-conflict-in-lithuania-530-1550526?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/lithuania-could-soon-have-a-border-fence-but-key-procurement-decisions-are-needed-530-1545654?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
Adjustments to the public procurement law, which could soon allow the possible construction of physical barriers at the border to obstruct international migrants, have been deemed unnecessary, and as shown by lessons learnt during the coronavirus pandemic, the necessary supplies and services can be procured very quickly.
]]> Laurynas Lukošiūnas, partner at the law firm Sorainen Opinion Thu, 05 Aug 2021 13:35:51 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/lithuania-could-soon-have-a-border-fence-but-key-procurement-decisions-are-needed-530-1545654?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ramunas-vilpisauskas-immigration-will-continue-even-after-this-crisis-it-s-time-to-prepare-for-it-530-1545284?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
While the current priority for Lithuanian institutions is handling the crisis sparked by the Belarusian leadership, the crisis has revealed a need to review the country’s migration policy and its practical implementation. It is likely that due to differences in economic development and military conflicts around the world, as well as natural phenomena related to climate change, global migration from the South to the North will remain significant and will even increase. If the Lithuanian economy continues growing as quickly in the future as it has since entering the EU, it will transition from a transit state to an ever more appealing country to live in.
]]> Ramūnas Vilpišauskas Opinion Thu, 05 Aug 2021 01:43:52 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ramunas-vilpisauskas-immigration-will-continue-even-after-this-crisis-it-s-time-to-prepare-for-it-530-1545284?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/mantas-martisius-the-sky-is-falling-at-the-border-for-a-bilotaite-530-1543112?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
The Belarusian government’s migrant-fuelled hybrid warfare against Lithuania has revealed a very difficult problem. It was revealed that there is a wide gulf between imagination and reality. In 2016-2017, exercises were held in Lithuania, which successfully modelled the handling of an influx of 40 thousand illegal migrants. The situation in summer 2021 revealed that just the arrival of 3 thousand illegal migrants becomes a task, which is hard to bear for the country.
]]> Mantas Martišius Opinion Sat, 31 Jul 2021 00:53:20 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/mantas-martisius-the-sky-is-falling-at-the-border-for-a-bilotaite-530-1543112?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/laurynas-jonavicius-why-a-new-agreement-on-lithuanian-foreign-policy-is-needed-530-1542536?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
Recent events in Lithuania and the surrounding region have raised an unusually large number of questions regarding Lithuanian foreign policy. The political events in Belarus, the challenge of illegal migration that relates to them, yet another attempt by major Western countries to seek opportunities for dialogue with Russia – these are all lately becoming the objects of increasingly heated discussions on foreign policy. There are at least a few serious lines of dispute.
]]> Laurynas Jonavičius Opinion Fri, 30 Jul 2021 05:38:37 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/laurynas-jonavicius-why-a-new-agreement-on-lithuanian-foreign-policy-is-needed-530-1542536?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/dainius-zalimas-about-crises-again-the-state-cannot-be-taken-hostage-by-fools-530-1542020?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
Usually, all opinions must be respected in a pluralistic democracy. However, it is not without reason that I use the word “usually.” In the end, you cannot view and respect equally opinions, which are based on rational arguments and those where no efforts are made to justify them, in other words – opinions without arguments to back them up.
]]> Dainius Žalimas Opinion Thu, 29 Jul 2021 08:05:24 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/dainius-zalimas-about-crises-again-the-state-cannot-be-taken-hostage-by-fools-530-1542020?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/sarunas-liekis-the-belarusian-dead-end-a-fiasco-of-lithuanian-diplomacy-530-1539214?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
Bilateral relations and diplomacy are typically decided not by domestic policy or ideology but by the country’s geopolitical calculations. The aim of diplomacy is to shift the decisions and behaviour of foreign states or international organisations by way of dialogue, negotiations and other non-violent measures. Human rights are typically left to handle for international organisations and non-governmental organisations in international relations, while in bilateral relations, they play a secondary role.
]]> Šarūnas Liekis Opinion Thu, 22 Jul 2021 23:40:11 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/sarunas-liekis-the-belarusian-dead-end-a-fiasco-of-lithuanian-diplomacy-530-1539214?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ruta-pumputiene-individualized-treatment-in-lithuania-will-the-government-s-program-turn-into-real-concrete-actions-530-1538190?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
One of the areas identified by the current government as in need of improvement to ensure patient well-being is individualized treatment. In its program, the government emphasized that it would seek to improve the quality of personal health care services by applying the latest treatment technologies, ensuring the most effective, modern, pathologically appropriate, individualized treatment, not the cheapest one. It was even announced at the beginning of June that with the permission of the Parliament it would be possible to choose not only the cheapest, as required now, but also more expensive reimbursable medicine - unfortunately, this step does not mean that doctors will be better able to take into account the patient's individual situation. In reality, there are still more declarative promises than concrete actions.
]]> Rūta Pumputienė Opinion Wed, 21 Jul 2021 08:38:49 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ruta-pumputiene-individualized-treatment-in-lithuania-will-the-government-s-program-turn-into-real-concrete-actions-530-1538190?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ramunas-vilpisauskas-four-observations-on-two-years-of-g-nauseda-s-presidency-530-1537632?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
From the very onset of his presidential campaign, President Gitanas Nausėda consistently emphasised his aim of establishing a welfare state in Lithuania, the core principles of which he publicly introduced after the previous Seimas elections. However, this aim of his is hampered by increasing discord with the ruling bloc and cabinet, who have been increasingly influencing foreign policy as of late, which the president himself faces increased responsibility lately.
]]> Ramūnas Vilpišauskas Opinion Tue, 20 Jul 2021 06:02:11 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/ramunas-vilpisauskas-four-observations-on-two-years-of-g-nauseda-s-presidency-530-1537632?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/v-beniusis-prospects-for-the-migrant-crisis-530-1537288?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
In the Netflix crime drama Young Wallander, which was filmed in Lithuania, Vilnius became the Swedish city Malmö and Šeškinė – a district resided by immigrants, with vast social and crime-related problems. The show might not become a reality, but the current migrant crisis will have long-term consequences.
]]> Vaidotas Beniušis Opinion Mon, 19 Jul 2021 11:57:57 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/v-beniusis-prospects-for-the-migrant-crisis-530-1537288?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/florian-rabitz-why-do-the-origins-of-the-coronavirus-matter-530-1537110?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed
From the beginning of the current pandemic, the predominant scientific hypothesis has been that the SARS-CoV-2 virus had natural origins. Just as with similar cases before, the outbreak resulted from the genetic reshuffling of a virus circulating in animal reservoirs. The combination of random mutations and evolutionary pressure would allow it to transmit from animals to humans at first, and between humans thereafter. The close proximity between humans and livestock in East Asian population centers increases the probability of such zoonotic origins.
]]> 15min@15min.lt (15min.lt) Opinion Mon, 19 Jul 2021 07:42:18 +0300 https://www.15min.lt/en/article/opinion/florian-rabitz-why-do-the-origins-of-the-coronavirus-matter-530-1537110?utm_source=rssfeed_15minen&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rssfeed