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Lithuania–Taiwan relations

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Taiwan–Lithuania relations
Map indicating locations of Taiwan and Lithuania

Taiwan
Lithuania
Diplomatic mission
Taiwanese Representative Office in LithuaniaLithuanian Trade Representative Office
Envoy
Representative Constance H. WangRepresentative Paulius Lukauskas

Taiwan, officially the Republic of China, does not have official diplomatic relations with Lithuania, since Lithuania does not officially recognize the Republic of China and maintains a One-China Policy whereby it views the People's Republic of China as the sole legitimate government representing China, including Taiwan. Despite this, relations between Lithuania and Taiwan have grown closer in recent years.[1] In 2021, Taiwan opened the "Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania". Meanwhile, Lithuania intends to open a representative office in Taiwan.[2] The recent strengthening of relations between Lithuania and Taiwan in 2021 has been heavily opposed by the People's Republic of China (PRC), which doesn't recognize Taiwan.[3] Notably, the PRC has downgraded its embassy in Lithuania to the status of a "chargé d'affaires" in protest.[4] The PRC and Lithuania had previously maintained full diplomatic relations with one another since 1991.

History

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The Republic of China (ROC) and Lithuania established diplomatic relations in 1921, three years after Lithuania's declaration of independence in 1918. The relations continued until the Soviet occupation of the Baltic states in 1940. The ROC did not recognise the Soviet annexation of Lithuania. The ROC lost the vast majority of its territory, namely mainland China, to the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949 (Chinese Civil War), and it has been limited to the island of Taiwan, formerly a Japanese colony and minor associated islands since the 1950s. Democratic Lithuania and modern-day ROC established unofficial diplomatic relations in 2021, thirty-one years after the restoration of Lithuania's independence in 1990.

In 1991, the PRC and Lithuania established diplomatic relations with one another, one year after the restoration of Lithuania's independence in 1990. Contemporaneously, Lithuania and Taiwan did not have much contact throughout the 1990s and 2000s, with Taiwan's main partner in the Baltic states being Latvia prior to 2021.[1]

Since 2020, Lithuania–Taiwan relations have rapidly warmed, and in April of that year 200 Lithuanian politicians and public figures petitioned the President of Lithuania to support Taiwan's membership in the World Health Organization. These calls were reiterated by the then-foreign minister, Linas Linkevičius, in a direct phone call with the head of the WHO.[5] On 19 June 2020, Taiwanese representative to the Baltic states Andy Chin spoke in the Seimas at the invitation of the opposition Homeland Union, inviting objection from China and marking the highest platform any Taiwanese official had achieved in the Baltic states.[6]

Lithuania's Freedom Party platform has a clause supporting full recognition of the independence of Taiwan (ROC),[7] and in the 2020 Lithuanian parliamentary election, parties sympathetic to Taiwan such as the Homeland Union and Freedom Party entered government and formed a coalition. In 2021, the Lithuania-Taiwan Forum was established by over 50 Lithuanian political figures,[8] most notably Mantas Adomėnas and Gintaras Steponavičius, and it was announced that Lithuania would open a trade office in Taiwan amidst growing discontent with China's "17 + 1" program.[9]

In October 2021, Lithuania's parliament passed a legislative revision that gave the green light to the country to open a representative office in Taiwan.[10] On 18 November 2021, Taiwan opened its de facto embassy, the Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania, in Vilnius. The naming of this office was notable for its use of "Taiwan" in the title rather than Taipei, though Lithuanian officials confirmed that the office would not have diplomatic status and the name would not imply recognition of statehood,[11][12] and have maintained that it was not in breach of their 1991 recognition of the PRC's One China principle during their establishment of diplomatic relations in 1991.[13] However, Beijing disagreed and recalled their ambassador from Vilnius[14] and expelled the Lithuanian ambassador in Beijing.[15][16] In early January 2022, The Taiwanese Representative Office in Vilnius announced that the Taiwanese government was planning to invest $200 million (USD) into Lithuania's industry and technology sectors later in the year.[17][18]

In an interview with The Economist in April 2022, Prime Minister of Lithuania Ingrida Šimonytė stated that Lithuania does not regret the decision to strengthen its ties with Taiwan. She described relationship between Taiwan and Lithunaia as "vibrant and productive," emphasizing that it was a sovereign decision by Lithuania to enhance its connections with Taiwanese businesses and universities.[19] In an October 2022 interview with Nikkei Asia, she stated that Lithuania's ties with Taiwan can contribute to significant development in industrial fields such as semiconductors and lasers.[20] In August 2022, the Deputy Minister for Transport and Communications Agnė Vaiciukevičiūtė made a 4-day visit to Taiwan in company with officials of the electro bus market in Lithuania.[21] During the visit she also met Foreign Minister Jaushieh Joseph Wu.[21] After the visit concluded, China imposed sanctions on Vaiciukevičiūtė.[22]

In May 2024, President of Lithuania Gitanas Nausėda stated in an interview that while he welcomed the establishment of the Taiwanese Representative Office, in the context of normalization of Lithuania's relations with China, there would be a need to change its name. In response to Nausėda's comments, Foreign Minister Wu stated that the office's name that was agreed on in 2021 by the governments of Lithuania and Taiwan, after negotiations and signing of documents. He also further stated that Taiwan had not received any official request for name change and would not accept it even if such request was received.[23]

Following the defeat of the centre-right coalition in the 2024 Lithuanian parliamentary election, the new presumptive Prime Minister Gintautas Paluckas of the victorious Social Democratic Party vowed to re-establish full diplomatic relations with China. Paluckas described the previous government's decision to open the Taiwanese representative office as a "grave diplomatic mistake", but declined to comment on whether he would ask Taiwan to rename it.[24] Taiwanese Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung stated that Taiwan did not oppose Lithuania restoring ties with China, and emphasized that Lithuania could maintain relations with both China and Taiwan.[25]

Trade and cultural cooperation

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Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania

Taipei and Vilnius established sister city status on 28 May 1998.[26]

In 2020, Lithuania exported $37.8 million (USD) to Taiwan or 0.07%, and imported $97.3 million, or 0.23%. Lithuanian exports were predominantly tobacco, chemicals, furniture and wood, while Taiwanese exports were mainly in the tech and machinery sector.[27]

In September 2021, Taiwanese official statistics showed that 112,000 credit card transactions from Taiwanese at Lithuanian businesses with a total volume of $86 million (USD), and the Bank of Lithuania observed an increase of 56% from the period from the previous year.[28]

Aid

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Taiwan donated 100,000 face masks to Lithuania early during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, Lithuania donated 20,000 and then a further 235,900 doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to Taiwan. Taiwanese food giant I-Mei Foods donated over 21,000 of its signature puff cookies to Lithuania in gratitude.[29]

2015 Taoyuan incident

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During the medal ceremony for Lithuanian team in 2015 World Deaf Basketball Championships in Taoyuan, Taiwan, where they won the final against the United States, the organizers of the tournament erroneously played the Soviet-era anthem instead of the actual anthem, upsetting the Lithuanians. The team, led by coach Algimantas Šatas, was forced to stand in dais during the entirety of the song. Later, the organizers recognized the mistake and apologized.[30]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Andrijauskas, Konstantinas (13 January 2021). "Taiwan and Lithuania ties grow tighter". China Observers. China Observers.EU. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  2. ^ Tai, Ya-chen; Mazzetta, Matthew (20 July 2021). "Lithuania to open trade office in Taiwan this fall". Focus Taiwan. Retrieved 14 November 2021.
  3. ^ Galbraith, Andrew (30 October 2021). "China warns Lithuania, European officials over Taiwan row". Reuters. Retrieved 14 November 2021.
  4. ^ "China downgrades diplomatic relations with Lithuania over Taiwan row". The Guardian. 21 November 2021. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  5. ^ "Lithuania calls on WHO to invite Taiwan to international assembly". lrt.lt. 13 May 2020. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  6. ^ "Chinese ambassador incensed after Taiwan representative speaks in Lithuanian parliament". lrt.lt. 23 June 2020. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  7. ^ "Laisvės partijos" (PDF). www.laisvespartija.lt. 2020. p. 138. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  8. ^ "BNS: Naujiena". BNS (in Lithuanian). 22 March 2021. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  9. ^ "Lithuania to open Taiwan trade office, the latest sign of discontent with China by a '17+1' member". South China Morning Post. 4 March 2021. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  10. ^ "Lithuania passes law, giving green light to open Taiwan office - Focus Taiwan". focustaiwan.tw (in Chinese). Retrieved 28 October 2021.
  11. ^ "Taiwan opens representative office in Lithuania". DW. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  12. ^ "URM: taivaniečių atstovybė Vilniuje diplomatinio statuso neturės". Delfi.lt. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  13. ^ "Po Kinijos priekaištų Lietuvai – Šimonytės atsakas: mes laikomės sutarties". Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  14. ^ Aboudouh, Ahmed. "'More bark than bite': How China's reprimand over Taiwan falls on deaf ears in Lithuania". The Independent. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  15. ^ Agence France-Presse. "Lithuania ambassador leaving China". www.taipeitimes.com. Taipei Times. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
  16. ^ "China downgrades ties with Lithuania over Taiwan". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  17. ^ "Taiwan to invest $200m in Lithuania to offset Beijing's sanctions". lrt.lt. 5 January 2022. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
  18. ^ "Taiwan setting up $200m Lithuania fund amid China row". BBC News. 6 January 2022. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
  19. ^ Chen, Kelvin (8 April 2022). "Lithuania prime minister has no regrets over Taiwan ties". Taiwan News. Retrieved 24 July 2024.
  20. ^ Kawasaki, Natsumi (28 October 2022). "Lithuania's ties with Taiwan will pay high-tech dividends: PM". Nikkei Asia. Retrieved 24 July 2024.
  21. ^ a b Chang, Meg (16 August 2022). "VR China verhängt Sanktionen gegen litauische Politikerin nach Taiwanbesuch". Taiwan Heute (in German). Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  22. ^ Tian, Yew Lun (13 August 2022). "China sanctions Lithuanian deputy minister for Taiwan visit". Reuters. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  23. ^ Yeh, Joseph (9 May 2024). "Taiwan stands firm on name of representative office in Lithuania". Focus Taiwan. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  24. ^ Jakučionis, Saulius (31 October 2024). "Lithuania's presumptive PM vows to restore ties with China". lrt.lt.
  25. ^ "Taiwan does not oppose Lithuania restoring ties with China, says FM". lrt.lt. 7 November 2024.
  26. ^ "Taipei City Council-International Sister Cities". 臺北市議會 (in Chinese). 1 January 2002. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  27. ^ "Lithuania (LTU) Exports, Imports, and Trade Partners – The Observatory of Economic Complexity". OEC. 2019. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  28. ^ "Lietuvos verslas nepastebėjo taivaniečių milijonų". 15min.lt. 14 September 2021.
  29. ^ "Taiwan company plans to send puffs to Lithuania following vaccine donation". Central News Agency (Taiwan). Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  30. ^ "Rinktinės treneris apie Lietuvos kurčiųjų rinktinei sugrotą tarybinį himną: klysta visi". lrt.lt (in Lithuanian). 8 September 2015. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
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