Lithuanian senior officials from the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport and the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences were invited to Taiwan to visit the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) from February 2.

The delegation was led by Gintautas Jakštas, representative of the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport, and included Prof. Jūras Banys, Dean of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences, Prof. Romas Baronas, former Chairman of the Lithuanian Research Council, and Prof. Sikh Sikh, former Professor of the University of Vilnius, who was invited by Minister of NSTC, Tsung-Tsong Wu, to visit Taiwan from the 2nd to the 8th. 

Wu mentioned that he had visited Lithuania in October 2021 and was impressed by its basic research achievements. He hoped that this opportunity would be taken to further strengthen the cooperation between the two governments in terms of global research, as well as forward-looking technology and talent cultivation in research units.

According to NSTC, their meeting focused on the fields of biomedical research and laser technology, with academics from both sides briefing and discussing CRISPR gene editing technology, laser and photonic technology, and that in addition to holding joint seminars in the future, they will also gradually increase the scale and level of bilateral cooperation through talent selection and exchange.

He is one of the first scientists to discover that the Cas9 protein can be used to cut DNA, and has made significant contributions to the development of gene editing technology. He will give a lecture on CRISPR gene editing technology at Academia Sinica scheduled on 3 February.

NSTC will also arrange a delegation to meet with the Ministry of Education and visit important universities and research institutions in Taiwan, including Academia Sinica, Taiwan Semiconductor Center, NTU Cancer Center, National Cheng Kung University, China Medical University, as well as science parks north and south of Taiwan, to further deepen the partnership.

NSTC led a delegation to visit Lituania in 2021 and signed six MOUs, including semiconductor talent training, laser and photonic technology, satellites, semiconductor technology, biotechnology, business opportunities and financing cooperation, etc. Both sides will strengthen the above-mentioned cooperation, jointly promote research and participate in EU projects.