Beijing urged the Baltic state to "correct its mistakes."
After Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė's statement about the possibility of renaming the Taiwanese mission in Vilnius in honor of the island's capital, Taipei, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania does not comment on the name change of the mission and emphasizes that the normalization of relations with China requires time and mutual respect.
"Lithuania adheres to the one-China policy, does not recognize Taiwan's independence, and does not establish diplomatic relations with it. The Taiwanese mission in Vilnius does not have diplomatic status and performs functions of representation in the field of economic, trade, cultural, and social cooperation," the ministry's comment states.
Thus, the ministry responded to the question of whether Lithuania would be inclined to change the name of the representation in order to restore diplomatic relations with China.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasizes that Lithuania is purposefully striving for the normalization of diplomatic relations with China to the level existing in other European Union (EU) member states and remains open to dialogue based on mutual respect.
"This is a complex and lengthy process that requires effort and mutual consent from both sides. Lithuania has presented specific proposals for restoring diplomatic representations and remains open to dialogue, guided by international law, customary diplomatic practice, and national legal acts," the ministry's statement reads.
Prime Minister Šimonytė stated that she sees no reason why the Taiwanese representation could not be named in honor of Taipei.
China considers Taiwan its territory and has vowed to return the island in the future, even if it requires the use of force. While other countries seek closer ties with Taipei, Beijing has repeatedly reminded them that this is only possible within the framework of the one-China policy.
Last week, the head of government stated that after the opening of the Taiwanese representation in Vilnius, Lithuania "threw itself under the train and lost" because it did not coordinate its actions with the EU and the USA.
For its part, China urged Lithuania to correct what Beijing sees as mistakes in the development of relations with Taiwan, thereby creating conditions for the normalization of bilateral relations.
At the same time, the Taiwanese ministry states that Taipei is not discussing with Vilnius the change of the name of the Taiwanese representation in Lithuania and continues to develop cooperation with Lithuania in the fields of lasers, semiconductors, and finance.
As reported by BNS, in recent years Vilnius and Beijing have disagreed on how to restore diplomatic representation in both countries after the dispute over the name of the Taiwanese mission.
Since mid-May last year, there have been no accredited Chinese diplomats or other staff in Lithuania. After the opening of the representation of Taiwan in 2021, bilateral trade also sharply decreased.
The government program of Šimonytė includes the goal of "restoring diplomatic relations with China to the level existing in other European Union countries."
Lithuanian President: the name of the representation is determined by Taiwan itself
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda stated that the name of the Taiwanese mission is primarily the responsibility of Taiwan itself, and its change depends not only on Lithuania's will.
"First of all, I want to clarify the situation. Right now we are talking about the Taiwanese representation in Lithuania; this is not Lithuania's representation for which we invented a name and can now change it. This is a Taiwanese mission, and primarily, it is the Taiwanese representation that determines the name," the head of state stated on LRT on Thursday before an informal meeting of the European Council at the Castle of Alden-Biesen in Belgium.
"Of course, we can discuss with them the possibility of changing the name of the representation, but before starting such a discussion, it should be understood that a response of 'no' is also possible, and that the name of the representation may not change," he said.
He made this statement after Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė stated that she sees no reason why the Taiwanese representation could not be named in honor of the island's capital, Taipei.
China considers Taiwan its territory and has vowed to return the island in the future, even if it requires the use of force. While other countries seek closer ties with Taipei, Beijing has repeatedly reminded them that this is only possible within the framework of the one-China policy.
Last week, the head of government stated in an interview with BNS that after the opening of the Taiwanese representation in Vilnius, Lithuania "threw itself under the train and lost" because it did not coordinate its actions with the EU and the USA.
For its part, China urged Lithuania to correct what Beijing sees as mistakes in the development of relations with Taiwan, thereby creating conditions for the normalization of bilateral relations.
At the same time, the Taiwanese ministry states that Taipei is not discussing with Vilnius the change of the name of the Taiwanese representation in Lithuania and continues to develop cooperation with Lithuania in the fields of lasers, semiconductors, and finance.
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