Little Lithuania shows its muscles against China

Audio 03:36

A view of the Lithuanian embassy in Beijing, August 10, 2021 © AFP / JADE GAO

By: Heike Schmidt Follow

5 mins

A small Baltic country dares to show its muscles against the Chinese superpower.

Within months, Lithuania admitted that the Uyghur minority was the victim of genocide, recommended to owners of Huawei smartphones to throw it out as soon as possible, and then last month Lithuania dared to open an "office of representation of Taiwan ”and not of Taipei, as is customary so as not to irritate China, which claims the island as its own territory.

Beijing does not take off, to the point that the 19 Lithuanian diplomats present in China preferred, last week, to return home, no longer feeling safe in the country.

Decryption of this diplomatic crisis with Lithuanian MP Dovilé Sakaliene.

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RFI: Hello Dovilé Sakaliene, how did Lithuania become the number 1 enemy of Beijing in Europe

Dovilé Sakaliene

: We did not want to trigger any crisis.

We did not want to sever our relationship.

We are just saying, simply and calmly, that there are red lines that should not be crossed.

If a state wants to dictate its law to us and prohibit us from strengthening our ties with Taiwan, that is unacceptable.

When China sanctions elected parliamentarians for having defended fundamental rights or for having dared to say that the Uyghurs are victims of genocide, it is unacceptable.

So we try to defend our freedom of choice.

Since the Taiwanese flag flew over Vilnius, Lithuanian products have been blocked by Chinese customs.

How long can you hold out against Chinese pressure

I want to say that we have not violated the recognized principle that there is only one China.

It is indeed a "representation of Taiwan" since it represents much more than just the capital Taipei.

It is a fact that Taiwan is an island inhabited by Taiwanese.

Having said that, of course we respect the signed agreements and have not done anything illegal.

We just say "beware".

When we see how China is violating international agreements and trampling on freedoms in Hong Kong or the Xinjiang region, we opt for caution.

Having suffered from a communist regime under the Soviet Union ourselves, we know how powerful propaganda can cover up crimes.

We see how China treats those who disagree.

It is therefore normal that we defend every inch of our democracy.

You yourself are one of the 10 European personalities sanctioned by China.

Beijing accuses you of "

We are only three million Lithuanians.

More than 10 million Uyghurs are currently repressed, persecuted, killed.

Three times more than our entire population suffers every day.

It therefore seems difficult to me to remain silent.

As for the fight between David and Goliath, this is exactly what the People's Republic of China is trying to propagate, that no one can resist its superpower.

But we have to put limits on it.

The democratic world is much bigger than China, so we must join forces.

Tensions have only been mounting since last May, when Lithuania slammed the door of the 17 + 1 Economic Cooperation Forum, which brings together China and 17 countries of central and eastern Europe.

Why have you turned your back on Beijing

The 17 + 1 format divides countries and is not beneficial to us, unlike the European Union-China format.

We understood that China operates in the mode: divide and rule, divide and coerce, divide and suppress.

Lithuania, as a good partner, favors a clear format: it is the European Union which must speak to China.

Does this spirit of rebellion also come from the fact that Lithuania is disappointed by China, which has not kept its investment promises

The whole world saw life in pink, we all dreamed of Chinese investments.

But if you look at what is happening in countries that have become dependent on the Chinese, in Africa or elsewhere, and how China imposes its rules on them, I tell myself that we should not be disappointed that their investments have been so modest. with us.

Nations that love their freedoms, like us, like France, Germany and many others, must understand that there is a price to pay if we want to " 

 ".

Either they cut your head off or put you in a cage.

Let’s not play that game.

Democratic countries must be pragmatic and choose to come together and unite, because cooperation will be more lasting, more predictable, more stable and based on the rule of law.

I am not naive, we are a very small country.

But every great choir is made of little voices.

So let's try to make our voices heard!

Like the United States and many other countries, Lithuania has already announced a diplomatic boycott of the Olympic Games in Beijing, do you hope France will follow your example

Going to participate in these genocide games, because that is what they should be called, is unacceptable for any democratic state.

We are seeing industrial-scale human rights violations in Xinjiang.

Do political leaders want to be paraded like trophies from the Chinese regime?

The same one who holds hundreds of thousands of innocent people in re-education camps and uses forced labor?

Any political representative must think about it.

It is a moral choice.

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