Lithuania announced Monday that it has opened an office in Taipei in order to boost trade, a year after Taiwan inaugurated a de facto embassy in the capital of the Baltic EU country.
"I am happy that we were able to open this representative office," Lithuanian Economy Minister Ausrine Armonaite told reporters in Vilnius, stressing Vilnius is not developing diplomatic ties.
Lithuania decided to use the name of the island's capital, Taipei, to refer to Taiwan, in line with a more nuanced international practice to avoid angering China, which considers the island to be part of its territory.
The announcement of the opening of the mission comes hot on the heels of Taiwan's decision to invest 3.5 million euros into a Lithuanian laser technology company.
Armonaite stressed Monday that her country "is not developing diplomatic relations" with Taiwan but rather "trade relations".
"Lithuania is developing trade relations with different regions," she added.
The full name of the mission is the Lithuanian Trade Representative office in Taipei, with its head appointed by the economy minister.
In a statement, Taiwan's foreign ministry hailed the "new page of friendly and cooperative relations between Taiwan and Lithuania."
"Taiwan and Lithuania are close partners on the frontline against authoritarianism. We not only share universal values such as democracy and freedom, but also face the challenges brought by post-pandemic recovery and the Russian-Ukrainian war," it added.
Relations between China and Lithuania have been tense since last year, when Vilnius allowed Taiwan to open a de facto embassy under the island's name, a departure from the common diplomatic practice.
In August, China said it would sever transport ties with Lithuania following the visit of Lithuania's deputy transport minister to Taiwan.
Beijing also attacked the country's foreign minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, the only senior official from an EU country to publicly support the trip to Taiwan by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
In July, Lithuania had already incurred China's wrath after hosting a Taiwanese delegation led by parliament speaker You Si-kun.
Meanwhile, a UK trade minister arrived in Taiwan on Monday for the first in-person talks since the coronavirus pandemic in a bid to boost ties with the self-ruled island, sparking a rebuke from Beijing.
China angered as UK trade minister visits Taiwan
Taipei (AFP) Nov 7, 2022 –
A UK trade minister arrived in Taiwan on Monday for the first in-person talks since the coronavirus pandemic in a bid to boost ties with the self-ruled island, sparking a rebuke from Beijing.
Trade Policy Minister Greg Hands will co-host annual talks starting Tuesday and meet Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen during his two-day visit, the Department for International Trade said.
Hands noted that Britain and Taiwan were both centres for global technology and that the "flourishing" island was a "vital partner" as the UK seeks new trade in the Pacific after Brexit.
The visit would help "future-proof" the UK economy by securing Taiwanese supply chains in semiconductors and electronic components, he wrote in The Times newspaper.
But China, which claims Taiwan as part of its territory, took umbrage at the trip by Hands — the first by a British minister to the island since 2018.
Beijing urges Britain to "stop any form of official exchanges with Taiwan and stop sending wrong signals to Taiwan separatist forces", foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said.
In London, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's spokesman denied any change towards UK diplomatic recognition of China.
"We have a vibrant, longstanding relationship (with Taiwan) on areas like trade and culture and this will form part of that engagement," he told reporters.
Taiwan has seen a flurry of visits by foreign officials and lawmakers in recent months, the most high-profile of which was US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, whose trip infuriated Beijing.
China staged unprecedented military drills in retaliation for Pelosi's visit in August, sending tensions to their highest level in decades.
