Lithuania will open its representative office in Taiwan “as soon as we are ready”, Deputy Economy Minister Karolis Zemaitis, who is currently visiting the island, has said.
The previous plan was to open the office on September 12.
Vilnius’ representative to Taiwan, Paulius Lukauskas, “arrived last week and is only a few days out of quarantine, so he is now getting ready for the opening of the office”, Zemaitis has said.
“We will open it as soon as we are ready,” he added.
The vice-minister could not say if the office would be opened until the end of his visit on September 16.
“The key thing here is that the representative is already physically here and working,” Zemaitis said. “As to whether or not we can do it during this visit, we are not focusing on that.”
“The main goal is to help our business delegation. The opening is, of course, an important symbolic step, but it is equally important for us that this business visit is a success,” he added.
The vice-minister and a delegation of 17 Lithuanian businesses started their visit to Taiwan on September 12.
Vilnius’ representative office is expected to open in September. It will be named Lithuania’s Representative Office in Taipei, rather than Taiwan, which is in line with international practice to avoid any hint of state-level relations with the island that China regards as part of its territory.
Lithuanian officials also stress it will be a trade office, not a diplomatic one.
Lithuania last year allowed Taipei to open its representative office in Vilnius with the word “Taiwanese”, rather than “Taipei”, in its name.
In response, Beijing downgraded diplomatic ties with Vilnius and blocked Lithuanian exports. (LRT/Business World Magazine)
