The US State Department says that there is no truth to a recent report saying that it has asked Lithuania to change the name of Taiwan’s representative office in the Lithuanian capital.
The office opened late last year under the name “The Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania”. This choice of name angered China, which considers itself the only legitimate representative of Taiwan. China normally insists that countries hosting Taiwanese offices don’t let the offices mention Taiwan in their names.
China has retaliated against Lithuania for letting the office operate under its current name. On the diplomatic front, China has downgraded the level of its diplomatic relations with Lithuania. And on the economic front, it has taken punitive measures including refusing to admit shipments of Lithuanian products.
On Thursday, The Financial Times quoted an unnamed person it says has knowledge of the matter as saying that the US has asked Lithuania to simply have the office change its name. According to the Financial Times report, the US feels that the issue of the Taiwanese representative office’s name gives Beijing an opportunity to coerce Lithuania. The report says that this Chinese coercion could in turn damage the efforts of Taiwan and Lithuania to expand their relationship.
However, a US State Department spokesperson has told reporters that the Financial Times report is untrue. The spokesperson said that the United States continues to respect and support efforts by Taiwan and Lithuania to strengthen their ties.