US, EU express shared concerns over China's political, economic pressure against Lithuania

In a telephonic conversation on Wednesday, United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken and European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell underscored shared concerns about escalating political pressure and economic coercion by the People's Republic of China (PRC) against Lithuania. Taking to Twitter, Blinken highlighted that both the leaders continue to operate maintaining close coordination on shared US-EU challenges, ensuring solidarity with Lithuania in the face of China's coercive behaviour since the EU nation allowed the opening of de facto Taiwan Representative Office in Vilnius, which Beijing labelled as an "extremely egregious act". A press statement released by US State Department spokesperson Ned Price, following the telephonic discussion, further confirmed that the top diplomats also "committed to working together to strengthen economic resilience".

The diplomats also emphasised the need for coordinated action to support Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Additionally, they reaffirmed that any further Russian military aggression against Ukraine would have "massive consequences" for the Russian Federation. "The Secretary and the High Representative affirmed their continued commitment to strengthen the U.S.-EU partnership and work together to confront shared challenges," Price said in his statement.

China intensifies response against Lithuania

Since early December, strife between China and Lithuania took intense turns after Vilnius temporarily evacuated its top diplomatic office in Beijing, citing security concerns. This came days after Lithuania expanded diplomatic relations with Taiwan, largely infuriating Beijing. Meanwhile, Lithuanian companies were already bearing the brunt of the deteriorating relationship between the two nations with unofficial economic measures, causing large-scale confusion, China Observers reported. The companies based in the EU nation have been essentially in limbo, especially exporters as they are struggling to clear their goods through Chinese customs.

Meanwhile, China has dismissed Vilnius' claims over security concerns for Lithuanian diplomats in the mainland, saying that "such allegations are groundless." Speaking at a press briefing last Thursday (Dec. 17), Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Webin accused Lithuania of vacating Beijing on "groundless fabrications out of thin air." Highlighting that China has always attached high attention to protecting the premises and personnel of foreign diplomatic missions and ensuring their normal operations, Webin added that Lithuania's move has undermined the bilateral ties between both countries. As of now, in what has been dubbed as a "moderate" response to Lithuania, for openly creating a "false impression" of 'One China Policy', by China Observers, Beijing has suspended the issuance of visas in Lithuania.

(Image: AP)