Taiwan to launch $1 bln Lithuania credit fund amid China conflict

Taiwan last week announced plans to set up a separate $200 million fund to invest in Lithuanian industries and boost bilateral trade as it tries to fend off China's diplomatic pressure on the Baltic state. "This investment and credit fund will help us strengthen the cooperation," Taiwan's National Development Council Minister Kung Ming-Hsin told an online news conference on Tuesday.

Taiwan will launch a $1 billion credit program to help fund joint projects between Lithuanian and Taiwanese companies in six business categories, a Taiwan government minister said on Tuesday.

Lithuania is under pressure from China which claims democratically ruled Taiwan as its own territory, to reverse a decision last year to allow the island to open a de-facto embassy in Vilnius under its own name. Taiwan last week announced plans to set up a separate $200 million fund to invest in Lithuanian industries and boost bilateral trade as it tries to fend off China's diplomatic pressure on the Baltic state.

"This investment and credit fund will help us strengthen the cooperation," Taiwan's National Development Council Minister Kung Ming-Hsin told an online news conference on Tuesday. Lithuania's Economy and Innovations Minister Ausrine Armonaite welcomed the news and said her country plans to open a trade representation office in Taiwan in the spring.