Japan–Lithuania relations
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Japan–Lithuania relations are the bilateral foreign relations between
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
and
Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
. Japan has an embassy in
Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...
. Lithuania has an embassy in
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
. Japan was one of the few countries to recognize the Soviet occupation of the Baltic countries including Lithuania. On February, 1992, Embassy of Japan to Lithuania was established in Denmark, and on January, 1997, it moved to Vilnius, Lithuania. On June, 1998, Embassy of Lithuania to Japan was established in Tokyo.Information on Lithuania on the site of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan


History


Interwar period

January 3, 1919, the date when Japan recognized Lithuania ''de facto'' is considered the beginning of the bilateral relations. On February 8, 1929, the agreement by which visas were abolished was signed between Japan and Lithuania, while in 1930 the Trade and shipping agreement was signed.


During the period of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact

On November 23, 1939, the Japanese consulate was established, led by Vice Consul Chiune Sugihara. However, due to the
occupation Occupation commonly refers to: *Occupation (human activity), or job, one's role in society, often a regular activity performed for payment *Occupation (protest), political demonstration by holding public or symbolic spaces *Military occupation, th ...
, the consulate was shut the following year. In 1940, Chiune Sugihara assisted the flight of
Jewish refugees This article lists expulsions, refugee crises and other forms of displacement that have affected Jews. Timeline The following is a list of Jewish expulsions and events that prompted significant streams of Jewish refugees. Assyrian captivity ; ...
from the imminent Nazi invasion of Lithuania by issuing them transit visas from the consulate in
Kaunas Kaunas (; ; also see other names) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the largest city and the centre of a county in the Duchy of Trakai ...
, despite instructions from the Japanese Government attempting to block his actions. Up to 10,000 refugees were saved with this action.


Modern relations

There is a significant close partnership between the city of
Kuji is a Japanese city in Iwate Prefecture. , the city had an estimated population of 34,418 in 15,675 households, and a population density of 55 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Kuji is in far northeastern Iwate Prefect ...
and Klaipėda, established in 1989. Japan ''de facto'' re-recognized Lithuania on September 6, 1991, and a month later diplomatic relations were re-established between these countries. In 1997 the Embassy of Japan was established in Vilnius and in 1998 the Embassy of Lithuania was established in Tokyo. In March 2016, Japan and Lithuania agreed to cooperate on nuclear safety.


Military ties

In August 2016, Training Squadron vessels of the
Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force , abbreviated , also simply known as the Japanese Navy, is the maritime warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. The JMSDF was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) ...
''Kashima'', ''Asagiri'' and ''Setoyuki'' sailed into Klaipėda port, to celebrate 25th anniversary of the re-establishment of diplomatic relations between this sovereign republic in the
Baltic region The terms Baltic Sea Region, Baltic Rim countries (or simply the Baltic Rim), and the Baltic Sea countries/states refer to slightly different combinations of countries in the general area surrounding the Baltic Sea, mainly in Northern Europe. ...
and the maritime nation in the
Far East The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons. The ter ...
. Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Antanas Linkevičius welcomed the Japanese vessels and their steadfast partnership based on the same fundamental values since 1991 as well as referred an honorable and righteous diplomat Chiune Sugihara, who served as the Japanese Vice-Consul at
Kaunas Kaunas (; ; also see other names) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the largest city and the centre of a county in the Duchy of Trakai ...
from 1939 to 1940 and granted
visas Visa most commonly refers to: * Visa Inc., a US multinational financial and payment cards company ** Visa Debit card issued by the above company ** Visa Electron, a debit card ** Visa Plus, an interbank network *Travel visa, a document that allo ...
to thousands of
Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
and other minority refugees in his short term of office. The JMSDF Training Squadron also visited Lithuanian Military Academy, where some students and officers train ''
Kendo is a modern Japanese martial art, descended from kenjutsu (one of the old Japanese martial arts, swordsmanship), that uses bamboo swords (shinai) as well as protective armor (bōgu). Today, it is widely practiced within Japan and has spread ...
'', a modern Japanese martial arts descended from ''
Bushido is a moral code concerning samurai attitudes, behavior and lifestyle. There are multiple bushido types which evolved significantly through history. Contemporary forms of bushido are still used in the social and economic organization of Japan. ...
'' and swordsmanship. On August 10, a sports exchange event between Japanese and Lithuanian officers was held at the military academy, and the Lithuanian team won the ''Kendo'' match to Japanese team.


High level visits

In April 2001, Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus paid an official visit to Japan, and on April 11, he held talks with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori about their views on several issues that includes their bilateral relations,
Japan–Russia relations Japan–Russia relations (russian: Российско-японские отношения, ''Rossiysko-yaponskiye otnosheniya''; ja, 日露関係, ''Nichiro kankei'') or Japanese–Russian relations are the bilateral international relations bet ...
and Lithuania's accession to EU and
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
. In May 2007, the Emperor and Empress of Japan,
Akihito is a member of the Imperial House of Japan who reigned as the 125th emperor of Japan from 7 January 1989 until his abdication on 30 April 2019. He presided over the Heisei era, ''Heisei'' being an expression of achieving peace worldwide. Bo ...
and
Michiko Michiko is a Japanese given name, used for females. Although written romanized the same way, the Japanese language written forms (kanji, katakana, hiragana) can be different. Common forms include: * 美智子 — "beautiful wise child" * 美 ...
, made an official visit to Lithuania.Japanese imperial couple visit Lithuania — The Manila Times (May 28, 2007)
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See also

* Foreign relations of Japan *
Foreign relations of Lithuania Lithuania is a Northern country on the south-eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, a member of the United Nations Organisation, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the European Union, the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, the Wo ...


References


External links


Embassy of Lithuania in Japan

Embassy of Japan in Lithuania
{{DEFAULTSORT:Japan-Lithuania Relations
Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
Bilateral relations of Lithuania