Kasčiūnas warns renaming Taiwan office would be a major mistake

Lithuania would make a major diplomatic mistake by changing the name of the Taiwanese Representative Office, opposition leader Laurynas Kasčiūnas said Friday, LRT reported. He warned that China could present the move as another diplomatic victory without any guarantee that relations with Beijing would improve.

Kasčiūnas, chairman of the Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats, said Taiwan was important to Lithuania both as an economic partner and as a source of diplomatic leverage. He said ties with Taiwan opened doors in some US political circles and created opportunities to work with freer Asian markets.

Kasčiūnas said Kęstutis Budrys had been tasked, during the formation of Mindaugas Sinkevičius’s government, with restoring higher-level diplomatic relations with China within six months. But, he argued, efforts to do so had put the foreign minister in a diplomatic dead end. Changing the office’s name was a demand from China that would have to be met before talks could begin, he said, adding that Lithuania might gain nothing in return.

He also urged Lithuania to consider China’s role in international affairs, saying Beijing supports Russia in its war against Ukraine, contributes to weakening European industry and seeks to change the international order. Kasčiūnas called China a source of threats to Lithuania’s national security and questioned whether restoring relations was worth making concessions to Beijing.

Kasčiūnas called for suspending discussions about renaming the office and focusing instead on economic cooperation with Taiwan. He said Lithuania should seek greater Taiwanese investment and technology transfers and use the partnership to strengthen its position among Western countries.

The debate resumed after the Delfi news portal reported that, in September, Foreign Ministry representatives had given the head of the Taiwanese Representative Office, Constance H. Wang, an informal document asking Taiwan to change the office’s name in Vilnius by October 1. In return, Taiwan was reportedly offered an agreement on investment prospects and talks on avoiding double taxation. Foreign Minister Budrys acknowledged discussions with Taiwan but denied that the ministry had pressured the office to change its name.

Chinese Foreign Ministry officials and diplomats from China’s mission to the European Union visited Lithuania on Wednesday and Thursday. Relations between Vilnius and Beijing deteriorated sharply after the Taiwanese Representative Office opened in Lithuania in late 2021. China imposed strict diplomatic and economic sanctions and downgraded diplomatic relations with Lithuania from ambassadorial to chargé d’affaires level.