Visits by former Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis and a delegation comprising government officials and nongovernmental organization experts from Lithuania are sincerely welcomed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
According to the MOFA, Landsbergis is visiting Taiwan Jan. 12-16 for the first time. President Lai Ching-te will confer the Order of Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon on the former official for his contribution to promoting bilateral ties.
Landsbergis will also meet with Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim and Legislative Yuan Vice President Johnny C. Chiang, attend banquets hosted by National Security Council Secretary-General Jaushieh Joseph Wu and MOFA Minister Lin Chia-lung, and deliver a speech at National Taiwan University, among other engagements.
In his capacity as the Baltic state’s foreign minister, Landsbergis helped arrange donations of COVID-19 vaccines to Taiwan at the height of the pandemic and firmly supported the establishment of the Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania. He also penned an op-ed calling on global society to stand with Taiwan when China launched military exercises around the country in 2022, the MOFA said.
Another Lithuanian delegation specializing in countering foreign information manipulation and interference is also visiting Taiwan Jan. 12-18, the ministry said. The group is led by Vilmantas Vitkauskas, vice-chancellor and head of National Crisis Management Centre of the Lithuanian Chancellery, and comprises Vilijus Samuila, a senior official from the Lithuania Foreign Ministry, and five NGO experts.
The group will attend a banquet hosted by Deputy Foreign Minister François Chihchung Wu, call on the NSC, Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau, and meet with representatives of local NGOs to discuss issues regarding countering disinformation and enhancing social resilience. (SFC-E)
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