Lithuania’s diplomatic delegation to China hastily left the country on Wednesday over security fears, according to diplomatic sources, with the embassy disappearing entirely from local online maps.

Their sudden departure escalates an ongoing diplomatic spat between Lithuania and Beijing over Taiwan, which China claims as its own despite having never ruled there, after a de facto Taiwanese embassy was opened in the Baltic state’s capital in summer.

Lithuanian authorities said they had summoned Audra Ciapiene, their charge d’affaires, back from China for “consultations” and that the embassy would operate remotely for the time being.

Diplomatic sources said a group of about 20 embassy personnel and dependents had left Beijing en route to Paris in response to “intimidation”.

In November, the Chinese government downgraded the status of Lithuania’s diplomats in China, raising worries in Vilnius that they would no longer have diplomatic immunity and be at risk of detention, according to sources familiar with the situation. 

On Wednesday, searches for the Lithuanian embassy in Beijing yielded no results on Baidu, a Chinese map app. Chinese censors have previously removed sensitive locations from maps.

The building, in a gated Beijing compound, appeared empty on Wednesday, with no one answering either the telephone or the door. 

Lithuania’s foreign ministry said it was ready to continue a dialogue with China and restore the functions of the embassy once a mutually beneficial agreement has been reached.

Justified fears

The row began in July, when Lithuania decided to allow Taiwan to open a representative office in Vilnius under its own name.

The Chinese government, furious, recalled its ambassador to Vilnius and demanded that Lithuania take corrective measures.

Beijing also asked Lithuania to recall its ambassador to China, Diana Mickeviciene, who left in September. 

The issue underscores the challenges facing the EU on how to respond to the thorny issue in a unified way as Beijing steps up pressure on countries to sever relations with the island.

The bloc now faces the question on how it should respond in support of a member state. 

Taiwan has its own democratically-elected government, currency, foreign policy and military. But Beijing has long claimed the island of 23 million as a renegade province, vowing to use force if necessary to ‘reunify.’

Like most countries, Lithuania has formal relations with China and Taiwan, but the country’s ruling coalition agreed last year to support what it described as “those fighting for freedom” in the island territory.

Despite escalating tensions, Vilnius continued on with plans to allow Taiwan to open its representative office, prompting Beijing to impose economic sanctions. This month, China blocked all Lithuanian exports. 

Lithuania’s fears for its embassy staff are not without foundation.

The Chinese government has previously arbitrarily detained former diplomats, including Michael Kovrig, a Canadian who was on leave when he was disappeared by state security in late 2018 in a spat involving Beijing, Ottawa and Washington. 

Mr Kovrig was only recently released after being held for three years.