(Text by Guoyanghao of Observer Network)
On July 14th, the Lithuanian Parliament voted to approve the cabinet lineup and policy platform of the new Prime Minister of Lithuania, Didomas Gyskinvicius. The new government led by him officially took office.
The new government's policy platform states: "We will promote the normalization of China-Lithuania diplomatic relations, and restore the level of bilateral diplomatic representative offices to that of other EU member states' diplomatic representative offices in China (i.e., at the ambassadorial level)."
Lithuanian Radio and Television Company (LRT) reported on the 14th that there are no significant changes in the new government's foreign relations policy. However, major changes are expected in its relations with China. "The Sinkevicius government seems prepared to make greater efforts than previous governments."
Lithuanian scholars and observers also generally doubt whether the Democratic Progressive Party will make more strategic investments in Lithuania.
Valentinas Beržiūnas, a lecturer at the Institute of International Relations and Political Science at Vilnius University, believes that the decision to name the representative office 'Taiwan Representative Office' was more of an provocative act of independence, which led Lithuania away from a broader European consensus.
He said: “Neither Latvia, Estonia, nor Poland—which is much larger in scale—has pursued such a tough policy towards China.”
Professor Arvydas Kumpis, director of the Asian Research Center at Vytautas Magnus University, said that even adopting this name exceeded expectations from outside sources. As such, reverting to a more common naming format used in other countries should not be seen as a major setback.
Kunpis said that the DPP authorities should realize that changing the name of the representative office is something that will happen sooner or later.
Belginas also believes that pragmatism is driving discussions on this issue within Lithuania. The reality is that setting up representative offices has hardly brought any substantial economic benefits. Therefore, disappointment over this policy is growing within Lithuania.
"For both Europe and Lithuania, maintaining a diversified diplomatic relationship and keeping connections with a global major power like China is a practical approach. Because when diplomatic relations lack diversity, serious consequences can occur during times of crisis."
