Lithuania's finance minister said on Thursday she would propose a temporary windfall tax on bank profits, aiming to raise an estimated 510 million euros ($539 million) over a two-year period.

If approved by parliament, the proceeds from the extra taxes on 2023 and 2024 profits would be dedicated to defence spending, Finance Minister Gintare Skaiste told a news conference.

"In large part, the policy of banks has no influence on the profits, they are due to exceptional circumstances, and are probably surprising to banks themselves," Skaiste said. (Reporting by Andrius Sytas in Vilnius, writing by Terje Solsvik, editing by Gwladys Fouche)