The struggle between the presidency and Veryga: who hopes to make a difference

The president is the Commander-in-Chief of the State Armed Forces, the Prime Minister, the Spokesperson of the Seimas, the Minister of National Defense and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. These people, members of the VGT, according to A. Veryga, should comment on the decisions related to the purchase of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Why should the authority responsible for matters related to military acquisitions, mobilization, military threats, etc., consider which vaccine should be purchased, for how much and when? Are these matters the province of the Prime Minister, much less the Commander of the Armed Forces?

Veryga, who made the request and handed over to the head of government in support of her last week, was initially skeptical of the presidency and later openly opposed, saying that the VGT meeting was not only unnecessary for the hiring process. which was already underway, but could also be an attempt to evade direct responsibility and is related to the preliminary inquiries initiated by previous hiring carried out by the Ministry ”. Such a dispute forces us to look more closely at the institution that is responsible for purchasing the vaccine.

I don’t want to bother the government

“It simply came to our attention then. That is why I do not want the Government or the Minister of Health to be insulted, that is why I suggest agreeing and requesting the State Defense Council a decision at the highest level on the security of our country, our people. , what to do next. ”Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis motivated the State Defense Council and thus shared responsibility for the so-called risky decision to purchase vaccines against coronavirus infection (COVID-19) last week.

His Deputy Minister of Health, Aurelijus Veryga, also emphasized that the transfer of responsibility was aimed at “minimizing possible disagreements between institutions in the future.” Such statements did not convince the presidency and G. Nausėda openly asked for more arguments.

According to the head of the SAM, the VGT is a format in which the issues of National Defense, the energy sector and transportation were repeatedly discussed, so the issue of the acquisition of vaccines, which requires a broad consensus of the public powers, it is not inferior to possible railway projects.

However, after receiving a negative response from Darius Kuliešius, the president’s adviser on national security, A. Veryga said Tuesday night that the presidency was ignoring the government’s initiative. In his Facebook account, the Minister stressed that Mr. Kuliešius, having not read the government documents, had decided that there were insufficient reasons to include this topic.

And was there any basis for that in regards to VGT? The transfer of the issue of responsibility to the VGT, which according to the law “considers and coordinates the most important issues in the defense of the State, including the activities of State institutions in the most important issues of guaranteeing and defending State security.” , forces to deepen in the decision logic.

A threat to national security?

The VGT Law establishes that the VGT includes (and is directed by) the President – the Commander-in-Chief of the State Armed Forces, as well as the Prime Minister, the Spokesperson of the Seimas, the Minister of National Defense and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. In particular, this council discusses issues related to the national security and territorial integrity of the country, in particular the defense of the country, military security, necessary decisions on acquisitions, agreements, mobilization, deployment of troops, etc.

However, paragraph 8 of article 4 of the VGT Law establishes that one of the activities of the VGT is “the consideration of other matters of defense of the State”.

The vaccine itself is a defense against the virus and coronavirus that causes COVID-19, although it is not explicitly identified in national documents as a threat to national security. during the situation.

Of course, there is no word on approving the purchase of vaccines in the VGT law, but protection against the coronavirus can be interpreted as a matter of national importance as a threat to national security in general, precisely because the national emergency declared at the end February and related. restrictions.

According to Tomas Janeliūnas, professor at the Institute of International Relations and Political Science at Vilnius University, the decision to buy a coronavirus vaccine may be within the purview of VGT.

“It just came to our attention then. And it may even be in practice if we agree that this is a matter of national security (and people’s lives should be included in it),” said the political scientist.

It is not the ambitions that matter, but the logistical issues

On the other hand, the VGT in this case is only an advisory body, since although article 7 of the VGT Law, paragraph 1 establishes that “VGT resolutions will be considered compulsorily in accordance with the competence of the administration institutions relevant public “, part 3 recalls that the VGT resolutions” on matters which, according to the Constitution and the laws of the Republic of Lithuania, fall within the competence of the President, the Seimas or the Government “.

Therefore, if the purchase of vaccines normally falls within the competence of the State Health Insurance Fund under the SAM, in case of problems with the vaccines already purchased, A. Veryga can always say that he did not follow the advice of a abstract expert, but VGT will take the opposite point of view: VGT decisions are taken by majority. That is the opinion of the Presidency.

“The organization of the COVID-19 vaccine procurement process is a crucial public health issue for which the Minister of Health is directly and personally responsible. The COVID-19 vaccine purchase process has already started and the wish of the Minister to get rid of his direct responsibility may be related to the pre-trial investigations initiated into previous purchases made by the Ministry, “says D. Kuliešius in a comment sent to Elta. According to him, the president has at the moment no doubt that the COVID-19 vaccine must be purchased. According to the head of state, according to the advisor, the most important thing is to guarantee a transparent and efficient process.

According to the president, in the future VGT may organize to address strategic issues in the fight against the COVID-19 outbreak.

However, in this particular case, the president has no doubt that the vaccine must be purchased, and the choice to be made to do so with other European Union countries by signing a suitable agreement with the European Commission in June is adequate. However, the purchase must be transparent and efficient. In the opinion of the President, the Minister should devote his attention, time and determination to the performance of his direct functions and not to attempts to evade responsibilities ”, says D. Kuliešius in the comment.

“On the other hand, the key question is whether vaccine supply needs can be met in the usual way or do we already have to go beyond direct institutions (SAM)?

It may be that additional resources are needed, for example for the transport of aircraft, as was the case during the quarantine period), perhaps even special protection, and it is worth consulting with the military and security authorities here, ”he said. T. Janeliūnas, noting that purchasing the vaccine in the first place, there may be a logistical challenge that requires coordination across the state rather than a single ministry.

In addition, T. Janeliūnas recalled that the president invites VGT. It is true that extraordinary meetings can be called by another member of the VGT, in this case Prime Minister S. Skvernelis, but the decision on the need for the meeting is ultimately made by the person in charge, that is, in this case the president, whose opinion was approved by his advisor. According to T. Janeliūnas, the factors of abandonment of ambitions and responsibilities are possible, but only very formal.

“It’s just a formal way of having a parachute. But I don’t think in a political sense he can protect anything,” T. Janeliūnas said of SAM’s transfer of responsibility. In his view, if the conflict were nonetheless resolved and the VGT met to discuss the vaccine, a solution, even a consultative one, could be useful before a new government and ministry is formed after the elections, and it is possible that additional decisions must be made very soon. with other institutions.

“Perhaps there is even some mistrust in SAM and the Government, or a coverage that if they are intergovernmental (before the formation of a new Government) quick decisions are needed so that the institutions know who is doing what”, emphasized T. Janeliūnas .