| Abstract [eng] |
The thesis “Attempt to securitize China in Lithuania“ focuses on increasing China‘s interest in Lithuania. The object is the process of securitization of China in Lithuania. The aim of this work is to reveal how the processes of securitization and desecuritization of China are functioning in Lithuania. In order to answer to the main question, there are four objectives in this work: 1. To determine the main aspects of securitization theory: the reasons of securitization and the risks associated with this process. 2. To analyze the importance of the positions and initiatives of Lithuania’s policymakers to the process of China’s securitization in Lithuania. 3. To disclose the tendencies between Lithuania and China in short term, mid-term and long-term. 4. To extract the main reasons why China is still not securitized in Lithuania. The processes of securitization and desecuritization are being analyzed by using speeches of politicians and public documents. The analysis is enriched by secondary sources: articles, journals and press reports. It has been found that certain political groups in Lithuania have started to raise the problem of China’s aggressive moves in international relations starting from the 2018. The problems such as the independence of Taiwan, the human rights of the people in Hong Kong and Xinjiang have attracted the attention of the Lithuania’s politicians. The attention of Lithuania to China’s role is highly connected with the previous government. In the 2016-2020 Parliament, the ruling party has been advocating the importance of economic relations with China. It must be noted that during this period the attention was not paid to the ongoing violations of the Chinese government. Despite that, in 2019-2020 there were three resolutions regarding China, none of them were registered. However, such stance of Lithuania’s politicians reflects how Lithuanian society views China. According to public polls, 34% of Lithuanians think that China is a friendly country, 26% have the opposite view and the biggest part of the respondents, 40%, do not have an opinion. Therefore, the results of this poll reflect the behavior of politicians, who are not securitizing China and they are seeking for the deeper economic relations with China. It has been observed that the tendencies regarding China are changing after the elections of the new Parliament in 2020. The new government is showing the signs of a more critical evaluation of China. The approved resolution “Regarding the long-term guidelines and continuity of the Republic of Lithuania’s foreign and European policies” pays attention to China as well. According to this resolution, “the Parliament is committed to support the economic, social, trade, cultural cooperation development with Taiwan, Hong Kong”. The resolution has been approved by 112 members of the Parliament. It demonstrates that Lithuania’s evaluation of China’s role is changing, and the priority is no longer the economy, but national security. However, it is important to highlight that there is a probability that after the elections in 2024, there might be a shift in power and the new majority may have a different view on China. Considering that public polls show that the majority of respondents do not have views on China, there is a huge possibility for new political forces to shape the views of Lithuanians. Considering the current availability of research regarding Sino-Lithuanian relations, it is expected that this work will contribute to the further analysis on the development and potential risks of Sino-Lithuanian relations, because it would be relevant to the future of Lithuania’s strategic plans. |
