Foreign Minister Wu confers Friendship Medal of Diplomacy upon former Vice Foreign Minister Adomėnas of Lithuania

Foreign Minister Wu confers Friendship Medal of Diplomacy upon former Vice Foreign Minister Adomėnas of Lithuania

• Date：2024-04-18
• Data Source：Department of European Affairs

April 18, 2024

Minister of Foreign Affairs Jaushieh Joseph Wu on April 17 conferred the Friendship Medal of Diplomacy upon Dr. Mantas Adomėnas, former Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, in recognition of his remarkable contributions to advancing bilateral relations and to facilitating the establishment of Taiwan's representative office in Lithuania, which includes the word Taiwanese in its name. Representative of the Lithuanian Trade Representative Office Paulius Lukauskas and Lithuanian expatriates attended the heartwarming event. Following the ceremony, Minister Wu hosted a welcome banquet for the five-member delegation led by Dr. Adomėnas and comprising academics from Lithuanian think tanks.

Speaking at the ceremony, Minister Wu called Dr. Adomėnas a genuine friend of Taiwan and thanked him for facilitating the donation of over 250,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine to Taiwan during his tenure as Lithuanian vice minister of foreign affairs, making Lithuania the first EU member state to do so. Minister Wu commended Dr. Adomėnas for playing a key role in helping Taiwan establish the Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania and for firmly supporting Taiwan's international participation. He lauded Dr. Adomėnas as a defender of democracy and freedom.

In his remarks, Dr. Adomėnas traced Lithuania's pursuit of freedom and democracy back to the 19th century, noting that Lithuania and Taiwan were like-minded partners that shared many similarities. He added that he was deeply touched to receive the Friendship Medal of Diplomacy in the presence of so many friends.

The visiting delegation included Dr. Margarita Šešelgytė, Director of the Institute of International Relations and Political Science (IIRPS) at Vilnius University; Dr. Laurynas Jonavičius, IIRPS Associate Professor and Adviser to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania; Mr. Marius Laurinavičius, independent foreign and security policy analyst; and Dr. Linas Kojala, Director of the Eastern Europe Studies Centre. The delegation's visit was expected to enhance interactions and exchanges between think tank academics of Taiwan and Lithuania.

During the banquet, Minister Wu and the Lithuanian delegation exchanged views on several issues including reciprocal economic and trade relations, the Russia-Ukraine war, European developments, authoritarian expansion, and tourism development in the Baltic region.

Taiwan and Lithuania both cherish democracy and freedom. The two countries have enjoyed steadily growing collaboration across such domains as technology, economy, trade, and assistance to Ukraine. This represents an exemplary model of cooperation and mutual assistance between like-minded nations. (E)