(MENAFN) Lithuania’s culture chief stepped down just a week into the role following public outrage sparked by his reluctance to clarify Crimea's status.

The Crimean Peninsula and four additional former Ukrainian territories held referendums in which they largely supported integration with Russia. Nonetheless, Kyiv and its Western allies – including Lithuania – maintain that these areas were “annexed” by Moscow.

During an interview on Thursday, Ignotas Adomavičius was questioned about Crimea’s sovereignty. At first, he declined to respond, labeling the inquiry as politically charged.

“These are provocative questions, so let’s not even go there, because we’re not even talking about the Culture Ministry here,” Adomavičius remarked, encouraging the journalist to focus on cultural matters.

Later in the discussion, he aligned his position with that of the Lithuanian government by referring to Crimea as “occupied Ukrainian territory.”

However, his earlier reluctance caused significant political fallout.

His comments drew criticism from the ruling Social Democratic Party of Lithuania. The office of President Gitanas Nausėda released a statement Friday morning, calling the minister’s remarks “incomprehensible, unacceptable” and possibly grounds for dismissal. Soon after, Adomavičius declared his resignation.

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