Gediminas Kirkilas

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Current Lithuanian Prime Minister Gediminas Kirkilas

Gediminas Kirkilas (pronunciation (help·info), b. August 30, 1951, Vilnius, Lithuania) is the current Prime Minister of Lithuania. He was appointed on July 4, 2006 after Zigmantas Balčytis, the provisional Prime Minister, failed to gather the required support from the Seimas. Kirkilas managed to get the necessary support from the Seimas on July 4, 2006 ([1]).

After he returned from mandatory military service, from 1972 to 1978 he worked in many cultural monuments (like churches or Verkiai palace) restoring their interior and especially rolled gold and moldeling. In 1978 - 1982 he was a student of Political science. After graduation he joined the Communist Party of Lithuania and took various posts there. After Algirdas Brazauskas became the secretary of the party, Kirkilas became his press secretary.

Since the independence was declared on March 11, 1990, Kirkilas was involved in the state matters and was elected four times (in 1992, 1996, 2000, and 2004) to the Seimas under the Social Democratic Party of Lithuania ballot. He became defense minister of Lithuania on December 7, 2004.

In 2004 he received an MBA from the International Business School in Vilnius.

In January 2007 he was praised in The Economist as an unsung hero whose "minority administration has surpassed all expectations".^[2]

[edit] External links

Official site

Preceded by Zigmantas Balčytis	Prime Minister of Lithuania 2006–	Succeeded by Incumbent

Prime Ministers of Lithuania
	Prime Ministers	Augustinas Voldemaras \| Mykolas Sleževičius \| Pranas Dovydaitis \| Mykolas Sleževičius \| Ernestas Galvanauskas \| Kazys Grinius \| Ernestas Galvanauskas \| Antanas Tumėnas \| Vytautas Petrulis \| Leonas Bistras \| Mykolas Sleževičius \| Augustinas Voldemaras \| Juozas Tūbelis \| Vladas Mironas \| Jonas Černius \| Antanas Merkys
	LSSR Premiers	Mečislovas Gedvilas \| Motiejus Šumauskas \| Juozas Maniušis \| Ringaudas Songaila \| Vytautas Sakalauskas
	Prime Ministers	Kazimira Prunskienė \| Albertas Šimėnas \| Gediminas Vagnorius \| Aleksandras Abišala \| Bronislovas Lubys \| Adolfas Šleževičius \| Laurynas Mindaugas Stankevičius \| Gediminas Vagnorius \| Irena Degutienė* \| Rolandas Paksas \| Irena Degutienė* \| Andrius Kubilius \| Rolandas Paksas \| Eugenijus Gentvilas* \| Algirdas Brazauskas \| Zigmantas Balčytis* \| Gediminas Kirkilas * denotes acting