Beijing has decided to downgrade its diplomatic relations to the rank of “business manager”, and accuses Lithuania to “create a bad precedent on the international stage”.
Le Monde
The crisis covered between the two countries, it is now open. China officially downgraded its diplomatic relations with Lithuania to the rank of “business representative,” said Sunday, November 21, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Beijing protests against establishing a de facto Embassy in Taiwan in Vilnius.
“The Chinese government has had to lower diplomatic relations between the two countries (…) in order to safeguard its sovereignty and fundamental standards of international relations,” the department explained in a statement. “The Lithuanian government must assume all the resulting consequences,” adds the communiqué, stating that its actions “have created a bad precedent on the international stage”.
Lithuania use “Taiwan representation office” is a major diplomatic gap, which challenged China’s pressure campaign to isolate autonomous democratic island on the international scene. Beijing added that Lithuania had “abandoned the political commitment taken during the establishment of diplomatic relations” with China, with reference to the “political of one China”, according to which countries officially recognize the Chinese government rather than that of Taiwan.
Isolate Taiwan on the international scene
Lithuania said, Sunday, that it “regrets” the decision of China. “Lithuania reaffirms its membership of the” China “policy, but at the same time has the right to expand its cooperation with Taiwan”, including by the establishment of non-diplomatic missions, retorted its Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a Communiqué.
China strives to keep Taipei isolated on the international scene and refuses any official use of the word “Taiwan”, fearing that it gives the island a feeling of international legitimacy.
The announcement, in July, of the opening in Vilnius of this de facto embassy triggered the reminder of the Chinese ambassador to Lithuania to Beijing. The Chinese authorities also demanded that Vilnius recalls his ambassador in China, which was done.
Beijing also interrupted the circulation of freight trains to Lithuania and ceased to issue food export permits.