On Thursday, Lukas Savickas had a meeting with US Ambassador Kara C. McDonald to discuss the US administration’s proposal for a new framework for the export of advanced computer chips and other artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
The current list of countries exempt from export restrictions is limited to 18 closest allies of the United States but Lithuania and most other Central and Eastern European countries are not among them.
"We have exchanged the view that this decision is not intended to be against Lithuania to some extent. But I stressed during the conversation that, as Lithuania expands its sector and markets, this should not become somehow restrictive," the minister told reporters after the meeting.
The US ambassador said the restrictions apply only to imports of exceptionally large quantities of chips and are not expected to have an impact on Lithuania.
Ambassador McDonald also explained that the new restrictions are open for comments for 120 days before taking effect. During this period, the terms of the restrictions will be agreed with the allies, including Lithuania.
US President Joe Biden’s administration said the restrictions aimed at maintaining US leadership in the AI development race. They are intended to prevent China and Russia from obtaining the most advanced technologies.
The list of countries exempt from restrictions includes Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Australia, France, Ireland, Italy and several others.