Three parties in Lithuania have agreed on a coalition programme and the number of ministerial posts in a new incoming government, LRT and ELTA reported. The Social Democratic Party of Lithuania (LSDP) will have nine ministers, while the Union of Democrats for Lithuania (DSVL) will have three and the Lithuanian Union of Farmers and Greens…
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda and Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene expressed support for Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys amid speculation about his future in government, LRT reported. Nauseda insisted that discussions about replacing Budrys were “not very responsible and not very serious”, pointing out that no concrete allegations had been made against him. Moreover, the President noted…
Lithuania has joined France, Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain in urging the EU to take tougher measures against abusive trade practices by China and other countries, Politico reports. The non-paper noted that some of the EU’s main trading partners were imposing new trade barriers and contributing to industrial overcapacity. The document proposed quicker and easier…
Estonia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs plans to nominate Hannes Hanso as the country’s new ambassador to the United States, ERR reports. He would replace Kristjan Prikk, who has been appointed to the post of Estonia’s ambassador to NATO. Currently, Hanso is Estonia’s ambassador to China, Mongolia, Thailand, and Vietnam. Previously, he has served as defence…
Lithuania has proposed an action plan to attract more investments from Taiwan, the Foreign Ministry announced, BNS reports. The plan, which remains a “working draft,” outlines priority sectors and potential projects with a focus on developing Lithuania’s high-tech sector, the ministry said. Asta Skaisgiryte, foreign policy adviser to President Gitanas Nauseda, said that Lithuania could…
Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene called for renaming the Taiwanese Representative Office in Vilnius to “Taipei Representative Office” instead, BNS reports. She argued that the decision to open the Taiwanese representation under its current name was a “hasty step,” suggesting that the mistake be corrected. However, such a move would not be a quick decision…
China remains open to dialogue with Lithuania, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian stated, Reuters reported. China hopes that Lithuania will “translate its willingness to improve bilateral relations into concrete action and promptly rectify its error,” he said. Earlier, Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene stated that the previous government had made a “major mistake” in…
Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene criticised the previous government’s decision to allow Taiwan to open a de facto embassy in Vilnius, BNS reports. She said that Lithuania “jumped in front of the train and lost” when it allowed Taiwan to open the representative office without coordinating the move with the EU and the US. Ruginiene…
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda warned of “risks associated with overly close engagement with the Chinese regime,” BNS reported. Speaking in an interview with Ziniu Radijas, Nauseda said that Lithuania “did not take pleasure” in the current rupture of diplomatic ties with China, but noted that restoring relations would require goodwill from both sides. He compared…