The World's 50 Greatest Leaders

Rank
45
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Dalia Grybauskaitė

Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite visits a vantage point overlooking Valletta during a break in the European Union leaders summit in Malta
Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite visits a vantage point overlooking Valletta during a break in the European Union leaders summit in Valletta, Malta, February 3, 2017. REUTERS/Yves Herman - RTX2ZHH0Yves Herman—Reuters
  • Title
    President
  • Affiliation
    Lithuania

She’s not called the Baltic states’ “Iron Lady” for nothing. Grybauskaitė, who in 2009 became Lithuania’s first woman President, began urging action against Vladimir Putin’s breaking of international law before Russia annexed Crimea or launched its “influence campaign” in the U.S. election. Grybauskaitė’s frank, insistent style sets her apart (particularly among her mealymouthed EU peers), and as the 28-nation bloc ponders a resurgent Russia, she’s not holding back in her calls for a strong NATO and a united European front.