A delegation led by the chairman of the Lithuanian Parliamentary Group for Relations with Taiwan yesterday arrived in Taipei to participate in a conference on democracy later this week.
The group, led by Matas Maldeikis, a Lithuanian lawmaker and an outspoken critic of China, touched down at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport at 6:18am yesterday.
Maldeikis said at the airport that he expected the trip to enhance understanding between Taiwan and Lithuania after cooperation between the two sides took a big step forward this past year.
Photo: CNA
“This trip will be another step in understanding each other because we are dealing with the same challenges,” he said.
Another member of the delegation, Lithuanian lawmaker Dovile Sakaliene, said she expected the Taiwan trip to be “inspiring,” as Lithuania knows how it feels to be next to the neighbor of “a large authoritarian regime.”
The Baltic state is near Russia, while Taiwan is just across the Strait from China.
She also said she saw it as a “badge of honor” to be on China’s travel ban list, as she is also critical of China’s communist regime.
Members of the delegation all joked that they would be joining the list soon, she said.
Sakaliene said that Taiwan is an important friend to Lithuania and Vilnius would “continue this friendship.”
The Lithuanian delegation would be joining other parliamentarians from Belize, Estonia, Latvia and Mexico at this year’s Open Parliament Forum on Wednesday and Thursday, where the promotion of democracy and open parliaments would be discussed, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
While in Taiwan, they are to meet President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) and Legislative Speaker You Si-kun (游錫堃) and attend a dinner hosted by Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮).
You yesterday welcomed the delegation upon their arrival, saying that Taiwan opens its arms to all partners who love freedom and democracy.
The visit comes as Taiwan bolsters exchanges with the EU.
Earlier this month, Taiwan inaugurated a representative office in Vilnius as part of a reciprocal deal reached with Lithuania in August. Lithuania is to open a representative office in Taipei early next year.
The Central Election Commission has amended election and recall regulations to require elected office candidates to provide proof that they have no Chinese citizenship, a Cabinet report said. The commission on Oct. 29 last year revised the Measures for the Permission of Family-based Residence, Long-term Residence and Settlement of People from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area (大陸地區人民在台灣地區依親居留長期居留或定居許可辦法), the Executive Yuan said in a report it submitted to the legislature for review. The revision requires Chinese citizens applying for permanent residency to submit notarial documents showing that they have lost their Chinese household record and have renounced — or have never
A magnitude 5.6 earthquake struck off the coast of Yilan County at 12:37pm today, with clear shaking felt across much of northern Taiwan. There were no immediate reports of damage. The epicenter of the quake was 16.9km east-southeast of Yilan County Hall offshore at a depth of 66.8km, Central Weather Administration (CWA) data showed. The maximum intensity registered at a 4 in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳) on Taiwan’s seven-tier scale. Other parts of Yilan, as well as certain areas of Hualien County, Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Hsinchu County, Taichung and Miaoli County, recorded intensities of 3. Residents of Yilan County and Taipei received
Taiwan has secured another breakthrough in fruit exports, with jujubes, dragon fruit and lychees approved for shipment to the EU, the Ministry of Agriculture said yesterday. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency on Thursday received formal notification of the approval from the EU, the ministry said, adding that the decision was expected to expand Taiwanese fruit producers’ access to high-end European markets. Taiwan exported 126 tonnes of lychees last year, valued at US$1.48 million, with Japan accounting for 102 tonnes. Other export destinations included New Zealand, Hong Kong, the US and Australia, ministry data showed. Jujube exports totaled 103 tonnes, valued at
BIG SPENDERS: Foreign investors bought the most Taiwan equities since 2005, signaling confidence that an AI boom would continue to benefit chipmakers Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC, 台積電) market capitalization swelled to US$2 trillion for the first time following a 4.25 percent rally in its American depositary receipts (ADR) overnight, putting the world’s biggest contract chipmaker sixth on the list of the world’s biggest companies by market capitalization, just behind Amazon.com Inc. The site CompaniesMarketcap.com ranked TSMC ahead of Saudi Aramco and Meta Platforms Inc. The Taiwanese company’s ADRs on Tuesday surged to US$385.75 on the New York Stock Exchange, as strong demand for artificial intelligence (AI) applications led to chip supply constraints and boost revenue growth to record-breaking levels. Each TSMC ADR represents
RSS