"I am delighted to announce the appointment of Mr Ušackas as head of our Delegation in Moscow. This is a key position in the European External Action Service," Catherine Ashton, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said in a press release.
Before, Ušackas was tipped as a likely candidate in Lithuania's 2014 presidential election. He says, however, that he will not run for the office intending instead to serve in the EU diplomatic service for the coming four years.
"As for the Lithuanian presidential elections, I have made my choice for the next four years – I will continue working in the EU diplomatic service by representing the interests of the EU and its member-states in Russia starting September 1, 2013," Ušackas told BNS when asked about his plans for the 2014 presidential elections in Lithuania.
Ušackas, a member of the opposition Homeland Union–Lithuanian Christian Democrats (conservatives), said in mid-2012 his decision on participation in the upcoming presidential race would be determined by "the situation in Lithuania and the world at a specific point in time as the election approaches.
“It will depend on my point of view, support from my family and presence of a clear vision, which I personally have," the diplomat said after Vilnius Mayor Artūras Zuokas criticized President Dalia Grybauskaitė and called for an alternative candidate in the 2014 race for the President's Office.
Ušackas has been heading the EU mission in Kabul since 2010, also serving as the organization's special envoy to Afghanistan. Before that, he served as foreign minister in the former center-right government but resigned amid disagreements with President Dalia Grybauskaitė.
The diplomat has headed Lithuania's embassies to the United States and Great Britain.
