III 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 446 

Commending the Government of the Republic of Lithuania for its resolve 

in increasing ties with Taiwan and supporting its firm stance against 

coercion by the Chinese Communist Party. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 4, 2021 

Mr. RISCH (for himself and Mrs. SHAHEEN) submitted the following 

resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Commending the Government of the Republic of Lithuania 

for its resolve in increasing ties with Taiwan and supporting its firm stance against coercion by the Chinese 

Communist Party. 

Whereas, on May 20, 2021, the parliament of Lithuania 

passed a resolution in which it recognized the People’s 

Republic of China’s treatment of the Uyghurs and members of Muslim and minority communities in Xinjiang region as a genocide, called upon the United Nations to investigate the People’s Republic of China’s internment 

camps for Uyghurs, and asked the European Commission 

to review its relationship with the People’s Republic of 

China; 


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•SRES 446 IS 

Whereas, on May 21, 2021, Lithuania withdrew from the 

17+1 format that facilitates collaboration between Central and Eastern European nations and the People’s Republic of China; 

Whereas the 17+1 was designed by the Chinese Communist 

Party (CCP) to both create business and cultural exchange opportunities for the People’s Republic of China, 

and to divide European nations on sub-regional issues regarding the People’s Republic of China; 

Whereas, on June 22, 2021, the Government of Lithuania 

announced its donation of 20,000 COVID–19 vaccines to 

Taiwan after the People’s Republic of China blocked Taiwan from participation in the world-wide COVAX vaccine 

sharing scheme; 

Whereas, on July 20, 2021, the Government of Lithuania announced the establishment of exchange offices with Taiwan under the name of the Taiwanese Representative Office; 

Whereas the CCP has aggressively punished other organizations and nations for using the name ‘‘Taiwan’’ to refer 

to the island, rather than referring to it by the CCP preferred ‘‘Chinese Taipei’’, a practice by which the CCP 

seeks to force other nations to conform to its view that 

Taiwan is a part of China; 

Whereas, in retaliation to the Government of Lithuania’s announcement of the Taiwanese Representative Office, the 

CCP implemented severe economic restrictions on Lithuania; 

Whereas, on August 10, 2021, the Government of the People’s Republic of China protested the announcement of 

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•SRES 446 IS 

bassador to Vilnius, and demanding that Lithuania remove its ambassador from Beijing; 

Whereas, on September 4, 2021, Lithuania’s Ambassador to 

China, Diana Mickevicˇiene ̇, returned to Vilnius; 

Whereas Lithuania’s European neighbors and European 

Union (EU) leaders have commended Lithuania’s bravery 

and have expressed willingness to stand in solidarity with 

Lithuania’s decision, including by issuing a joint letter 

from European Parliament members on September 3, 

2021; 

Whereas, on September 15, 2021, Secretary of State Antony 

Blinken reaffirmed the United States commitment to 

Lithuania, stating, ‘‘Lithuania and the United States are 

very strong partners in NATO. We stand together for 

collective defense and security. We stand against economic coercion, including that being exerted by China.’’; 

Whereas, on September 21, 2021, the Ministry of National 

Defence in Lithuania recommended that citizens not purchase phones manufactured in the People’s Republic of 

China and throw away their existing phones, after evidence emerged that the devices have censorship technology built in; 

Whereas, on September 22, 2021, the Government of Lithuania announced an additional vaccine donation to Taiwan totaling 235,900 doses; 

Whereas the People’s Republic of China has engaged in economic coercion to punish countries that do not do as the 

CCP wishes, including by banning the import of Australian wine and agricultural products after the Government of Australia supported launching an international 

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•SRES 446 IS 

demic, closing South Korean department stores and tourism after the Republic of Korea deployed the United 

States Terminal High Altitude Area Defense missile battery, restricting imports from the Philippines after that 

nation protested the People’s Republic of China’s assertive and unlawful actions in Scarborough Shoal, and cutting the imports of Norwegian salmon after Norway 

awarded a Chinese dissident with the Nobel Prize; 

Whereas the CCP regularly uses its economic power to pressure Taiwan’s diplomatic allies to cut ties with the island 

and instead diplomatically recognize the People’s Republic of China, as it did most recently with the Solomon Islands and Kiribati, leaving Taiwan with just 15 diplomatic allies; and 

Whereas the CCP has repeatedly and continuously barred 

Taiwan from meaningful participation in key international organizations such as the World Health Organization, International Civil Aviation Organization, and 

other United Nations organizations and affiliated mechanisms in an attempt to diplomatically isolate Taiwan: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) commends the Government of Lithuania for 

3 its decision to deepen ties with Taiwan and standing 

4 up to the Chinese Communist Party’s unfair coer5 cion and pressure; 

6 (2) commits to supporting Lithuania and Tai7 wan in the face of these challenges, including by ex8 ploring ways to increase economic cooperation with 

9 both countries; 


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•SRES 446 IS 

1 (3) encourages European allies to continue to 

2 stand in solidarity with Lithuania against aggression 

3 from the Government of the People’s Republic of 

4 China; 

5 (4) encourages the Lithuanian business commu6 nity to continue to seek opportunities for investment 

7 and growth with reliable partners outside of the Peo8 ple’s Republic of China’s abusive economic system; 

9 (5) expresses concern with the CCP’s aggressive 

10 actions and attempts to influence bilateral relations 

11 between governments attempting to build positive 

12 ties with Taiwan, a beacon of democracy in the 

13 Indo-Pacific and a key United States partner; and 

14 (6) supports Taiwan in its struggle against 

15 CCP malign influence, coercion, and aggression, 

16 which threatens not only the Taiwanese people and 

17 countries in the Indo-Pacific, but also any nation 

18 around the world that enacts policies or positions 

19 that are inconsistent with those of the CCP. 

Æ 


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