Vice President-elect Hsiao makes low-key visit to Lithuania

Taipei, March 23 (CNA) Vice President-elect Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) met with two Lithuanian presidential candidates during a low-key visit to Vilnius on Friday, a Lithuanian national security expert disclosed on Saturday.

Hsiao met with both Dainius Žalimas of the Freedom Party, part of the ruling block, and Giedrimas Jeglinskas of the opposition Union of Democrats "For Lithuania," according to Marius Laurinavičius in a Facebook post.

The meeting not only showcased Žalimas' consistent pro-Taiwan stance but also hinted at a potential shift in attitude towards Taiwan within the opposition bloc, said Laurinavičius, who also attended the meeting.

In addition to the talks, Hsiao visited many Taiwan-friendly politicians and gave a speech about Taiwan's democratic development at the Institute of International Relations and Political Sciences in Vilnius, said Laurinavičius.

It is regrettable that the news was neither disclosed by any local politicians nor covered by the press, he said.

"In any case, this visit was really the most important event of today in Lithuania in the field of international relations," Laurinavičius wrote in Lithuanian.

Laurinavičius also praised Czech Senate speaker Milos Vystrcil, who on March 19 posted a picture on his X social media page of him meeting and chatting with Hsiao.

Hsiao's low-key Czech trip came after she reportedly visited the United States in a personal capacity earlier this month, both triggering anger from China.

Later Saturday, Žygimantas Pavilionis, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Lithuanian Parliament, posted group photos of Hsiao, himself, as well as his Estonian and Latvian counterparts -- Marko Mihkelson and Rihards Kols -- on his X account.

Likewise, Jason Worlledge, an International Republican Institute scholar based in Poland, posted a selfie of himself and Hsiao on X, saying it was great to have met Hsiao in Warsaw.

A Polish scholar told CNA that Hsiao first headed to Warsaw for a forum held by the Casimir Pulaski Foundation before visiting Lithuania.

Hsiao, 52, served as Taiwan's top representative to Washington from July 2020, before resigning from the post to be Vice President Lai Ching-te's (賴清德) running mate in November 2023 in the Jan. 13 presidential race.