News

On 23 March, Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Audra Plepytė met with Margarita Franco Zimmermann, the newly appointed Ambassador of the Dominican Republic to Lithuania, Professor Ohene Adjei, Ambassador of Ghana, and Dato' Azri Matu Yacobu, Ambassador of Malaysia, who presented their credentials to the President, Gitanas Nausėda, on the same day.

During the meeting with the Ambassador of the Dominican Republic, Vice-Minister Plepytė discussed Russia’s war against Ukraine and the threats it poses to regional and global security. The Vice-Minister emphasized that the primary goal of the international community is to ensure long-term and sustainable peace in Ukraine in accordance with the principles of international law, sovereignty, and territorial integrity enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations. The Vice-Minister thanked the Dominican Republic for its principled stance in international organizations and urged it to continue its strong support for Ukraine.

The meeting also discussed opportunities to strengthen bilateral dialogue and cooperation between Lithuania and the Dominican Republic. Views were exchanged on partnership in the fields of information technology, cybersecurity, and digital transformation, with a focus on the potential for developing e-government solutions.

Lithuania invited the Dominican Republic to join the Vilnius Convention on Artificial Intelligence (AI), aimed at ensuring the ethical and safe development of AI. In addition to political and technological topics, opportunities for cultural cooperation were discussed, including the fostering of closer ties between museums.

Margarita Franco Zimmermann, who resides in Sweden, is the second Ambassador of the Dominican Republic to Lithuania.

During her meeting with the Ghanaian Ambassador to Lithuania, who resides in Germany, Plepytė discussed the dynamics of bilateral relations including economic and cultural cooperation , as they agreed on the need to strenghten ties. The Ambassador noted that he views Lithuania as an expert in the fields of cybersecurity, information and communication technologies, and agriculture. Therefore, cooperation should be deepened in these specific areas.

Adjei highlighted the active Ghanaian community in Lithuania, the majority of whom are students, and expressed a desire to collaborate on student exchange programs and provide opportunities for Lithuanian students to visit Ghana.

The Vice-Minister thanked the Ambassador of Ghana for his consistent support in adopting UN General Assembly resolutions regarding Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.

The Ambassador, who resides in Germany, is the sixth Ambassador of Ghana accredited to Lithuania.

During the meeting with the Malaysian Ambassador, the parties discussed opportunities for developing bilateral relations, strengthening a rules-based international order, and cooperating to address challenges related to supply chain resilience. The Vice-Minister emphasised the importance of Malaysia as one of the EU’s key partners in the ASEAN region, expressed support for the EU-Malaysia negotiations on a free trade agreement, and noted the significant untapped potential for strengthening bilateral trade and investment ties.

Opportunities to expand academic cooperation and student mobility were also discussed, particularly in the fields of information technology, engineering, and life sciences. The Vice-Minister noted Lithuania’s readiness to develop cooperation with Malaysia in the areas of financial technology, e-governance, and cybersecurity.

Plepytė urged Malaysia to continue contributing to international efforts to increase pressure on Russia, ensure the effective implementation of sanctions and prevent their circumvention, as well as to strengthen humanitarian aid to Ukraine.

Dato' Azri Matas Yacob, who resides in Warsaw, is the eighth Malaysian Ambassador accredited to Lithuania. Lithuania is represented in Malaysia by Ambassador Darius Gaidys, who resides in Singapore.

Lithuania established diplomatic relations with Ghana in 1992, with Malaysia in 1994, and with the Dominican Republic in 1995.