Paksas says his political foes are waging a vendetta

This comes despite a recommendation to the contrary by the state ethics commission two days ago.

Mr Paksas was impeached earlier this month after claims he leaked classified material and gave a Russian businessman citizenship for financial support.

But he has in turn accused his political foes of waging a "vendetta".

The first European president to be impeached, he denied the charges against him.

And the flamboyant 47-year-old former sportsman had vowed to stand again for election, in accordance with the Lithuanian constitution.

At the 2003 election, he won a shock victory over the incumbent, Valdas Adamkus.

Popular support

The Liberal Democrat Party had chosen Mr Paksas as its candidate for the 13 June election over the weekend and his name was given to the election commission.

But commission chief Zenonas Vaigauskas referred the issue to the future EU state's ethics commission.

However, despite the ethics commission's opposition, the election commission's head told AFP that six members voted in favour of permitting Mr Paksas to stand, while two opposed the move.

A BBC correspondent in the region says that Mr Paksas still enjoys popular support, mainly among those who are missing out on Lithuania's economic growth ahead of the former Soviet state's entry into the EU on 1 May.