Press release, 27 August 2021
Žygimantas Pavilionis, Chair of the Seimas Committee on Foreign Affairs, together with the chairs of the foreign affairs committees of the European and US Parliaments, adopted a Joint Statement condemning the political, diplomatic and economic pressure exerted on the Republic of Lithuania by the People’s Republic of China.
The Statement expresses support of the international democratic community for Lithuania as a sovereign state that has taken the decision to withdraw from the economic and political cooperation in 17+1 format and intends to develop the economic and cultural relations with Taiwan instead. The Statement also contains a call for maintaining the joint current stance on the aggressive behaviour of China.
Representatives of the Parliaments of the United States, Great Britain, Germany, France, Ireland, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Sweden, Ukraine and the European Parliament call on the governments, the European Union and other allies to ‘provide the Republic of Lithuania with comprehensive support in shaping a policy that serves its people and the wider international community.’
Žygimantas Pavilionis, Chair of the Seimas Committee on Foreign Affairs, thanks his European and US counterparts for their unanimous support and highlights that the solidarity they have expressed reaffirms their appreciation of the Lithuanian foreign policy that is based primarily on democratic values. He equally notes that all the major Western states are on Lithuania’s side and they will not allow China to demonstrate aggression against one of the EU Member States and NATO countries. The Chair of the Committee expresses his hope that China will realise that the ‘divide and rule’ strategy, which the Russian regime also often employs, will not work this time. We are and will be united with our Western allies.
At the invitation of Bob Menendez, Chair of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Žygimantas Pavilionis, Chair of the Seimas Committee on Foreign Affairs, will meet Members of the US Congress on 14 September 2021 to discuss support to democracy, China’s and Kremlin’s aggression, and energy security.
Full text of the Statement: