The Lithuanian parliament has approved laws to enable the establishment of trade offices in Taiwan and elsewhere, a government official said yesterday.
“Green light for Lithuanian #trade offices around the world! Today the #LT parliament has approved the laws that will enable the establishment of Lithuanian trade offices were [sic] we don’t have our diplomatic representation, including #Taiwan,” Lithuanian Minister of the Economy and Innovation Ausrine Armonaite wrote on Twitter.
For Lithuania, there are many unexplored opportunities in East and Southeast Asia, Armonaite said, adding that it is committed to developing trade and investment ties with Taiwan, Indonesia, Singapore, South Korea and other countries in the region.
The new laws would allow Lithuania to develop closer economic ties with advanced economies, while boosting cooperation in high technology and innovation, she said.
The Lithuanian government earlier this year said it planned to establish a trade office in Taiwan, which is expected to open by the end of the year.
In Taipei, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomed the news.
The two countries would continue to deepen relations based on their shared values of protecting democracy, freedom and human rights, ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou (歐江安) said in a statement.
A delegation of Lithuanian lawmakers is to visit Taiwan in December.
Lithuanian Member of Parliament Matas Maldeikis, chairman of the Parliamentary Group for Relations with Taiwan, on Thursday replied to an invitation by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators, saying he and other lawmakers would visit Taiwan in the first half of December.
The establishment of a Lithuanian trade office in Taipei is just the first step in Vilnius’ plan to boost relations with Taiwan, and it would greatly help both countries’ political and economic development, Maldeikis said.
DPP Legislator Chiu Chih-wei (邱志偉), chairman of the Legislative Yuan’s friendship association with Baltic countries, invited the lawmakers.
Taiwan and Lithuania share common values in democracy and freedom against authoritarianism, Chiu said.
Hopefully, Taiwanese lawmakers would form a delegation to visit Lithuania after the pandemic subsides, he said.
Additional reporting by Lin Chia-nan
The coast guard on Friday took a Chinese fishing boat and the 17 people on board into custody, after it rammed into a patrol boat while attempting to flee. A 100-tonne coast guard vessel at about 8am discovered a Chinese fishing boat illegally operating in waters about 11 nautical miles (20.4km) northwest of Hsinchu, the Hsinchu offshore flotilla of the Coast Guard Administration said. The crew refused to allow law enforcement to board the ship and attempted to flee, it added. The coast guard vessel and another ship chased the fishing boat for about a half hour, during which time the Chinese boat
Vice President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday said that Beijing was trying to “annex” Taiwan, while China said its recent series of drills near Taiwan are aimed at combating the “arrogance” of separatist forces. The Ministry of National Defense earlier this month said that it had observed dozens of Chinese fighters, drones, bombers and other aircraft, as well as warships and the Chinese aircraft carrier Shandong, operating nearby. The increased frequency of China’s military activities has raised the risk of events “getting out of hand” and sparking an accidental clash, Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) said last week. Asked about the spurt
Former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) on Monday said he would not attend the official Double Ten National Day celebrations for the first time this year, as its English name, “Taiwan National Day,” implies “Taiwan independence.” Writing on Facebook, Ma said he has attended every National Day celebration since entering public service 40 years ago, but “with an exceedingly heavy heart,” has decided to reject this year’s invitation. For the past three years, the government under President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has used “Taiwan National Day” for the event’s official English-language title, leaving the “Republic of China” nowhere to be found, he said. The move
RUNWAY UPGRADES: Airports and ports mainly scattered around southwestern Japan are being given major overhauls, primarily serving as civilian-use facilities Japan has chosen 33 airports and ports as candidates for improvement to enhance military capabilities, with a particular focus on infrastructure that could be utilized in a Taiwan emergency, according to a recent report in Japan’s Nikkei Shimbun. Citing the Japanese government’s fiscal budget proposal for next year, the newspaper said Toyko is to name some facilities as essential bases and receive funding for upgrades in line with the revamped national security strategy published last year. According to an unofficial policy document drafted last month and reviewed by the Nikkei, the Japanese government designated 14 airports and 19 ports for improvement, including
RSS