Riga - Officials confirmed Thursday that former Latvian president Vaira Vike-Freiberga would seek the position of European Union president when it is created after the Lisbon Treaty comes into force.

Latvian Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis gave tacit support to Vike-Freiberga on Wednesday but waited until Thursday to confirm that her name would be in the mix.

Dombrovskis' foreign policy adviser Solveiga Silkalna told the German Press Agency dpa that Vike-Freiberga's name was "being floated publicly" at the EU summit in Brussels but that no formal nomination process had begun.

"It's at the stage of testing the water," she said.

Lithuanian Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius confirmed Thursday that his government had been approached by Latvia to back Vike-Freiberga's candidacy, but he was lukewarm in his assessment.

"Latvians have asked us whether we would support their candidate, and my answer was that we would give it thought," Kubilius told the Baltic News Service.

Vike-Freiberga was raised in Canada and served two terms as Latvian president before retiring from day-to-day politics with high domestic approval ratings and a reputation as a strongly pro
-EU intellectual among the diplomatic community.

Another Baltic president, Estonia's incumbent President Toomas Hendrik Ilves, has also been mentioned as a possible candidate, though he has yet to declare himself in the running.

Higher-profile figures that have been mentioned in connection with the new position at the top of the EU structure include former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Luxembourg's Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker. (dpa)