New Delhi: The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved a proposal to open a new Indian embassy in Lithuania, the first full-fledged embassy in the Baltic region, currently at the forefront of forging a more aggressive European position against Russia over the Ukraine war. Lithuania is also at the centre of a diplomatic spat with China over the opening of a de-facto embassy by Taiwan.The Indian government said the opening of the mission in Lithuania would help India expand its political, strategic and economic engagements with that country.“The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accorded approval to the opening of a new Indian mission in Lithuania in 2022,” an official statement said.“Opening of the Indian mission in Lithuania will help expand India’s diplomatic footprint, deepen political relations and strategic cooperation, enable the growth of bilateral trade, investment and economic engagements and facilitate stronger people-to-people contacts,” it said.The government said setting up the mission will provide more sustained political outreach and help garner support for India’s foreign policy objectives.“Indian mission in Lithuania will also better assist the Indian community and protect their interests,” it said.The Lithuanian foreign ministry tweeted that setting up a new Indian embassy would help expand political, economic, and people-to-people relations.We are very happy to welcome decision of India 🇮🇳 to open its mission in Lithuania 🇱🇹 in 2022!We look forward to working together 🤝 in expanding our political and people-to-people relations, as well as boosting 📈 economic cooperation. https://t.co/gVJb34u4xv— Lithuania MFA | #StandWithUkraine (@LithuaniaMFA) April 27, 2022Lithuania was the first Baltic country to open an embassy in India in 2008. According to public broadcaster Lithuania Radio and Television, Indian officials had expressed intentions of opening an embassy back in 2005. But the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius has so far hosted only the country’s honorary consulate, which was opened in 2015.During a visit in 2017, then minister of state for external affairs M.J. Akbar had told a Lithuanian media outlet that India is considering opening an embassy soon. “It requires more courage than I have to actually to define a time limit for the government,” Akbar said in reply to a question on the timing to open an Indian embassy.A former Soviet republic and a NATO member, Lithuania, and its two Baltic neighbours, have advocated for more robust support for Ukraine, militarily and economically.Hours after Russia had invaded Ukraine on February 24, Lithuania had declared a state of emergency and deployed its army along the border with Russia and Belarus.Earlier this month, Lithuania became the first European country to ban all imports of Russian gas.Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda has also called for NATO to increase its troop deployment in Europe’s ‘eastern flank’. He also called for a reinforcement of the Baltics’ only overland connection to the rest of the European Union, a narrow strip of land between Belarus and Russia’s Kaliningrad enclave known as the Suwalki corridor, as per Reuters.In an interview in early April, Lithuania’s foreign minister Gabrielius Landsbergis had also reiterated the demand for NATO troops to have a permanent presence in his country. “Basically, Russia brought the troops. Russia broke the peace in the region. So, I think that there are no more legal constraints for NATO to deploy on a permanent basis in the eastern flank,” he said.Lithuania has also been urging Germany to speed up the supply of weapons to Ukraine. “It is extremely important that Ukraine gets the military equipment it needs now. Not tomorrow or the day after – then it could be too late,” said Lithuanian President Nauseda on April 26.The Lithuanian foreign minister was in India this week on a working visit to attend the Raisina Dialogue and meet with his Indian counterpart.India has, so far, refrained from publicly criticising Russia over its actions in Ukraine and abstained in successive resolutions condemning Moscow at the United Nations. New Delhi has expressed concern at civilian deaths in Ukraine, but did not point fingers at Russia as the perpetrator. It has called for an end to the fighting and a return to dialogue and diplomacy.On Monday, external affairs minister S. Jaishankar criticised Europe for being selective in being preoccupied in highlighting Ukraine as a threat to the rules-based order and turning a blind eye to earlier challenges in Asia.According to a readout from the Lithuanian foreign ministry, Landsbergis told external affairs minister Jaishankar that India was seen as a “crucial partner”, especially as a consequence of the Ukraine war.“The danger of Europe’s dependence on Russian oil and gas, especially during the war in Ukraine, as well as China’s economic pressure on Lithuania and other countries clearly demonstrate the importance of reducing our dependence on authoritarian states’ supply sources, diversifying supply chains, and focusing on boosting trade between the like-minded countries. In this light, both Lithuania and the European Union see India as a crucial partner,” said Landsbergis.After Taiwan opened a non-diplomatic office in the capital city, China had downgraded its relations with Lithuania in November 2021. Earlier this year, China also suspended exports of beef, dairy products and beer from Lithuania.During his call on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Landsbergis presented a Lithuanian-Sanskrit dictionary, “symbolising a historical, linguistical link between Lithuania and India”.(With PTI inputs)