Lithuanian Member of Parliament Matas Maldeikis said that Taiwan’s generosity to Lithuania is making a difference. That’s as Lithuania faces trade embargoes by China for welcoming a Taiwanese Representative Office to Vilnius, its capital. He made the remarks in a recent RTI interview.
Taiwan has set up a US$200 million investment fund and a US$1billion credit fund for Lithuania to help it deal with the pressure from Chinese trade sanctions. Local businesses have also been buying up goods rejected by China.
Maldeikis said that Taiwan’s generosity is sending a clear message to everyone. It is telling Lithuania’s domestic businesses that they don’t have to rely so much on China. It is also showing other European countries that are watching Lithuania-Taiwan ties closely how Taiwan is supporting Lithuanian. He said Taiwan’s generosity has been very important both economically and politically.
The state-run Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corp just imported over 20,000 bottles of Lithuanian rum rejected by China and Good Land Food & Technology Co bought 920 boxes of Lithuanian milk that were held up in Chinese customs.
Many Taiwan consumers have also been buying Lithuanian chocolate, beer and other goods sold in Taiwan. Local media reports have said that people in Taiwan have bought over US$90 million in Lithuanian goods last year, making it one of the most popular countries to buy goods from in Taiwan.
Maldeikis is the chair of the Lithuanian Parliamentary Group for Relations with Taiwan and led a delegation of 10 Baltic lawmakers to visit Taiwan in December 2021.