As politicians in Lithuania argue over the deployment of German troops in the Baltic country and how quickly they can arrive in the context of the war in Ukraine, President Gitanas Nauseda has sparked outrage after using a metaphor about the German army, which he compared to “a girl who doesn’t want a relationship for one night, but wants marriage,” Euronews and LRT report.

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda has been accused of sexism after he used an accidental metaphor in an interview with the Lithuanian news agency BNS regarding the ongoing deployment of German troops in Lithuania in the context of the war in Ukraine in an effort to strengthen the North Atlantic military alliance.

Germany will lead a NATO unit of about 3,000 servicemen assigned to protect Lithuania from possible military aggression. However, it is unclear whether the troops will be permanently stationed in Lithuania or simply rotated from Germany for exercises and operations.

Although Lithuania currently lacks the infrastructure to support a permanent NATO brigade, so only a command element will be physically based in Lithuania, some politicians argue that Vilnius should push for a permanent deployment as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, the rest of the brigade will be on standby in Germany until needed and will deploy ten days later.

That’s enough for Lithuanian Defense Minister Arvydas Anushauskas, who told local media that any Russian build-up near the border would take place over a period of more than ten days.

But Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis expressed concern that the agreement between the two countries requires German troops to be stationed in Lithuania and not arrive for ten days.

The statements of the President of Lithuania are sexist

President Nauseda called for moderation on the matter, but chose a strange turn of phrase to illustrate his point.

The President of Lithuania also intervened in the issue of the placement of German troops with a statement that caused a wave in the Baltic country.

“The German army, you know, is not the kind of girl for one night by the lake in the open air. This is a serious army that needs to be offered a marriage contract, and this marriage contract must clearly state the obligations of Lithuania that we will fulfill, because otherwise even the German army will not be able to fulfill its obligations to us,” Nauseda said in BNS interview.

Local media reported that the Vilnius leader was criticized by a women’s rights group, which called the remarks “sexist,” but the president’s office denied the allegations.

“This is a sexist statement that implies that if a woman is not offered marriage, she is less worthy, the relationship is less responsible, less serious, less committed. If someone wants to emphasize that relationships should be serious, less sexist metaphors can be found,” commented LRT Margarita Jankauskaite from the non-governmental organization for women’s rights, saying that the Lithuanian president’s statements could have been made during a drunken party.