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On Monday, May 15, at the Munich Leaders' Conference in Japan, Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said that the answer to the question of whether East Asia would face aggressive military revisionism, similar to the one taking place in Europe, highly depends on the current actions of the democratic states.

"During its long history with Russia, Lithuania has learned to read the warning signs. Don’t we see the same signs in Asia today? The problem, however, usually is not the inability to see the signs. Just like in the case of Russia, the greatest challenge is to mobilise the will and courage and start acting before it is too late," Landsbergis said.

The Minister emphasized that to prevent the current aggression from becoming the new norm we must ensure that Ukraine wins the war which requires further military assistance of all allies.

"For Ukraine's victory to be long-lasting, NATO is the only organization that can provide Ukraine with effective security guarantees. The NATO Summit to be held on July 11-12, in Vilnius, must pave the way to Ukraine’s membership of the NATO," the Minister said.

During the conference, Landsbergis addressed the NATO partners in Asia pinpointing the threats posed by dependence on China. According to the Minister, it was high time to reassess whether we wanted to remain dangerously dependent on China.

"Risk elimination could be the right move now however we must be prepared for a scenario when, as in the case of Russia, China's course of action leaves us with no choice but to distance ourselves. We must quickly adopt measures to combat the economic and political coercion that many countries have faced and will continue to face. Finally, we have to ensure that the rules-based international order remains fair and approachable to the rest of the world," the Minister said.

During the Munich leaders' conference, Landsbergis also met with Wolfgang Schmidt, German Federal Minister for Special Affairs and Head of the Chancellery, to discuss defensibility matters and the preparation for the NATO summit in Vilnius.

"We already hear the expectations of our partners for the Vilnius summit. The Eastern flank expects tangible progress in implementation of the Madrid summit decisions as well as strengthening deterrence in our countries, while Ukraine expects a trully pragmatic and political push towards the NATO membership," said the head of Lithuania’s diplomacy.

On Monday, Landsbergis also met with Taro Kono, Minister of Digitalization of Japan, and foreign ministers of the Philippines and the Maldives.

The Lithuanian Minister is on a visit to Japan on May 15-17. On Tuesday, the head of Lithuania’s diplomacy will meet Yoshimasa Hayashi, Japanese Foreign Minister, and Hirofumi Nakasone, Chairman of the Lithuanian parliamentary group, as well as other parliamentarians. On Wednesday, the Minister will present business and investment opportunities in Lithuania to the members of the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO).

Photos: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs