The decision was reported by Algirdas Butkevičius, the leader of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party and the most likely candidate for prime minister, after the meeting of the coalition partners at the parliament.
The Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania will have eight mandates in Lithuania's 141-seat parliament.
"We had a discussion today and reached an agreement to invite the leader of the Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania for a discussion on further cooperation," Butkevičius said after the meeting.
He denied that the Poles were invited to join the simple majority at the future parliament because of the fact that the party's mandates would lift the coalition to Constitutional majority in the parliament, i.e., secure the 85 votes needed to remove any official, including the president, by way of impeachment. With the mandates of the Electoral Action of Poles, the coalition would have at least 86 seats.
"The better the communication is at the Seimas, the more stable the situation will be in the country – in the moral, psychological, and economic sense, and the president will be happier," the Labour Party's leader Viktor Uspaskich said.
In his words, the provisions contained in the Polish party's program are in line with those of the parties of the center-left coalition.
"I believe that a coalition that covers a broader circle of interests and enjoys support of a larger electorate has a chance for more meaningful and useful work," his opinion was seconded by the Order and Justice party's leader Rolandas Paksas.
Butkevičius also said the coalition partners had already discussed the areas of responsibility of individual parties but has for now refused to elaborate.
According to the initial agreement, the Social Democrats should have the prime minister's post and head six or seven ministries, while the Labor Party should appoint the parliamentary speaker and four or five ministers, and Order and Justice should delegate two or three ministers.
Following the official statement on Monday that he would want to head the parliament, Uspaskich stepped back on Tuesday.
"When time comes, the Labour Party will name a candidate for the parliamentary speaker," he said.
Butkevičius confirmed that the Social Democrats would probably delegate its ministers of finance and foreign affairs, with a blessing still needed from President Dalia Grybauskaitė. In Butkevičius' words, she had already given a nod to the possible nomination of Ambassador to Belarus Linas Linkevičius as the foreign minister.
"I believe we will have the ministries distributed by the middle of next week," he added.
After the election results emerged after the second round of voting, the three parties agreed in early hours of Monday to form the new ruling coalition. They will have more than half of the seats in Lithuania's parliament.
Nevertheless, Grybauskaitė said on Monday she would support the political group that is capable of forming the majority excluding the Labour Party that is currently on trial.
According to preliminary results published by the Central Electoral Commission, the Social Democrats will have the largest group of 38 members in the new 141-seat parliament. The Homeland Union – Lithuanian Christian Democrats should be second with 33 members, followed by the Labour Party with 29.
The Order and Justice party should have 11 seats in the new parliament, the Liberal Movement should have 10, the Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania should have eight, the Path of Courage should have seven, and the Peasants and Greens Union should have one seat.
Poles will not head Education Ministry
The Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania should not be allowed to delegate the minister of education and science, should it join the forming center-left coalition, Social Democratic leader Algirdas Butkevičius said on Tuesday evening.
"No need to fear. We will talk and we understand well that the Ministry of Education and Science will be in good hands. I do not want to make any announcements but it should go to one of the parties of the coalition, we have already agreed," Butkevičius told the national television.
The Polish party's leader Valdemar Tomaševski has said that his party could delegate candidates for ministers of education, agriculture, economy, and communication. The party has criticized provisions of the Education Law, which stepped up the position of the official Lithuanian language in schools of national minorities.
Butkevičius, however, says that the Polish party can only have one ministry.
"If the talks start, we'll be able to talk only about one minister," the unofficial candidate for prime minister told journalists at the Seimas.
"One can always have strong wishes but the reality is slightly different. We'll definitely not be able to give them three ministers," Butkevičius said without elaborating on which ministry the EAPL could expect to have. But, he confirmed, it will definitely not be the education ministry.
A planned meeting of the leaders of the center-left coalition and EAPL' Tomaševski was cancelled as, Butkevičius said, Tomaševski, a Lithuanian MEP, had to leave for Brussels.
"We invited him to meet today but he's leaving today. To avoid all the rush, we postponed the meeting until next week," the Social Democratic leader said.
