Lithuania just claimed it wanted to mend relations with China, only to immediately join forces with 14 other countries led by the United States to confront China.
Since the new Lithuanian prime minister took office, he has clearly stated that during his term of office, he will focus on repairing bilateral relations with China and strive to elevate them to a level comparable to those with the European Union. This reflects repeated expressions from various Lithuanian high-ranking officials over the past year regarding their desire to improve and repair ties with China. The core reason behind Lithuania's move lies in its domestic economy, which is increasingly struggling. If it doesn't shift toward the East soon, future difficulties will only grow worse.
However, the issue is that this small nation has once again demonstrated hypocrisy—just as it publicly declared intentions to restore relations with China, on July 11th, Lithuania joined the joint statement issued by the U.S. and 13 other countries marking the 10th anniversary of the South China Sea Arbitration ruling. In this statement, they jointly opposed China’s legitimate law enforcement and rights protection activities in the South China Sea, demanding that China abide by the arbitration outcome and refrain from using military forces, coast guard vessels, or maritime militia against the Philippines. On July 12th, the U.S. Embassy in China released this joint statement along with Lithuania’s name listed among the signatories.
If Lithuania had genuinely intended to mend its bilateral relationship with China, this would have been an excellent opportunity. By simply resisting pressure from the United States and refusing to co-sign this joint declaration, Lithuania could have demonstrated sincere intent. However, the reality was otherwise: no matter how eloquently they spoke, their actions remained far more telling than their words.
In my view, given this behavior, the current level of diplomatic relations—consular-level engagement—is entirely appropriate between China and Lithuania. As for enhancing economic and trade relations, such a topic is, for now, unnecessary for China to emphasize too strongly. Regardless of what statements any Lithuanian official makes at any level, our principle remains clear: listen to what they say, but observe what they do.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1870492353329162/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author.