Lithuania’s plans to establish a trade office in Taiwan are part of its efforts to diversify its markets and expand its partners in Asia, Lithuanian Minister of the Economy and Innovation Ausrine Armonaite said, as China increases pressure on the Baltic country.
Armonaite made the remarks in a written response to a request for an interview by the Central News Agency, adding that the head of the trade office in Taiwan would be a career official employed by the ministry.
Like the EU, Lithuania respects China’s domestic and foreign policies, Armonaite said in response to Beijing’s actions against Lithuania for seeking to establish ties with Taiwan.
Photo: CNA
The spat erupted last month when Taiwan said it was establishing an office in Vilnius using the name “Taiwan” instead of “Taipei” — an act Beijing interpreted as a diplomatic insult.
Beijing on Tuesday last week recalled Ambassador Shen Zhifei (申知非) from Vilnius, and the following day demanded that Lithuanian Ambassador to China Diana Mickeviciene leave the country.
Armonaite said the EU has strong relations with Taiwan — as it is the EU’s sixth-largest trade partner in Asia, while the EU is the fifth-largest market for Taiwan — and Lithuania looks forward to following other EU members in establishing a trade office in Taiwan.
Lithuania pursues mutually beneficially economic relationships with all countries, “including China,” but bilateral ties must remain equal, she said.
Lithuania would become the 67th country to establish a trade office in Taiwan.
“We will not abandon plans to do so,” she said, adding that she hopes the office can foster bilateral collaborations, as well as attract Taiwanese investors to Lithuania, especially in high-tech, innovative and higher-value-added industries.
Lithuania’s strengths are in its laser technology, 90 percent of which is exported to clients such as NASA in the US, the European Organization for Nuclear Research and other major companies, such as IBM, Armonaite said.
Many Taiwanese firms also employ laser technology developed by Lithuania, she said, adding that Vilnius is also interested in collaborating with Taiwan in the information technology, finance, automation and biotechnology industries.
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