Lithuanian Deputy Minister of Economy: Before opening the Taiwanese office, we did not assess the scale of China’s possible response

By approving the opening of a Taiwanese representative office in Vilnius, the potential losses of Lithuanian entrepreneurs in connection with the forthcoming Chinese response were calculated, but the amount and application of possible Chinese sanctions were not taken into account, Lithuanian Deputy Minister of Economy and Innovation Jovita Neļššiene said on Tuesday.

She acknowledged that foreign capital companies operating in Lithuania are also under pressure from China.

“Obviously, we have not fully appreciated the unpredictable arsenal of measures available to authoritarian states. And it is being used not only against Lithuania, but also against other European Union member states. Foreign capital companies are working in Lithuania, which are also being targeted,” group of members of the Seimas.

Neļupšienė emphasized that the affected companies do not always want to publish information and the entrepreneurs are trying to find ways to circumvent the restrictions or remedy the situation.

The Deputy Minister pointed out that China is not Lithuania’s most important trading partner.

It has already been reported that Beijing is putting recent economic and diplomatic pressure on Lithuania in response to Vilnius’ decision to allow Taiwan to open a representation in Lithuania under the name “Taiwan” as China seeks to prevent any attempt by Taiwan to act as an independent state. Elsewhere in the world, such representations use the name “Taipei” as Taiwan’s capital, in line with Beijing’s “one China” policy, which does not allow Taiwan to be considered a separate country.

In response to the Vilnius decision, China suspended freight trains to Lithuania in the autumn, stopped issuing food export permits, reduced credit limits and increased prices for Lithuanian companies, and removed Lithuania from its customs system.

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