Severe sanctions in China must prevent the invasion of Taiwan

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  Sjoerd den Daas

  correspondent China

The Netherlands must fight for a sanctions package that will cause China to shy away from the invasion of Taiwan. So says D66 MP Sjoerd Sjoerdsma, who is visiting Taiwan with an international group. It is the first visit by a Dutch parliamentarian since Henk Krol visited the island in 2019.

“The consequences of a Chinese attack on Taiwan on our economy and the global economy will be many times what happened in Ukraine,” said Sjoerdsma, pointing to large trade flows through the Taiwan Strait and the chip industry for computer. “This also means that the urgency that the Netherlands must feel to adjust our policy to support Taiwan and put pressure on China has increased.”

Sjoerdsma visits Taipei with representatives from Germany, the UK and Ukraine, among others. They were received by President Tsai Ing-wen on Thursday morning. “We thank you for your support,” President Tsai told delegates. MEP Reinhard Bütikofer was forced to watch from behind the webcam. He tested positive for the crown.

“Taiwan is at the forefront of authoritarian expansion,” Tsai said in a video shared from his office in Taipei. He pointed to the war in Ukraine. “The democratic world order faces serious challenges. The Russian invasion of Ukraine and China’s ongoing long-term military exercises all indicate growing authoritarianism.”

US Secretary of State Blinken said last week that he expects a Chinese invasion of Taiwan to happen “faster” than previously thought. Tsai himself does not speak out about a timeline, but Taiwan has been warned. “Everything shows that they take into account that it doesn’t have to be something that takes a few years, but that it could also happen very quickly,” says Sjoerdsma, whose delegation previously spoke with the Taiwanese foreign minister.

Reason enough for parliamentarians to wake up Europe. “One of the greatest lessons of the Russian invasion of Ukraine is that we did not make it clear to Putin in advance what the consequences would be,” says Sjoerdsma. “I think it is very important for the Netherlands and for the European Union that we now put on the table what the consequences will be for Beijing if they attack Taiwan.”

The plans involve a combination of political and economic sanctions, and the closure of the banking system is also on the table as far as member D66 is concerned. Tools for which, according to him, they should be prepared if Beijing decides to invade or block Taiwan. Sjoerdsma: “Consequences that must be so far-reaching that the costs for Beijing will be much greater than the revenues.”

“The so-called parliamentarians you speak of want to raise the Taiwan issue,” Chinese foreign affairs spokesman Zhao Lijian said in response. “They are good at spreading lies and rumors and have no credibility, but they will help themselves to suffer humiliation,” Zhao said of Sjoerdsma and his associates plans for a sanctions package. “At the Taiwanese ruling party (DPP) we say: any cooperation with foreign forces is doomed to fail,” said Zhao.

Like Bütikofer, Sjoerdsma is on a sanction list in China for “spreading lies and misinformation,” as Beijing authorities say. The sanctions were in response to EU sanctions against the People’s Republic for human rights violations in Xinjiang and the motion passed by the House of Representatives to label the plight of Muslim minorities in the region as genocide.

Sjoerdsma says he doesn’t care much for what he calls intimidation of the Chinese authorities. “Where the EU lists people on a sanction list for human rights violations, Beijing lists people who have pledged to do so on a sanction list,” the MP said. “We would like to start a dialogue with the Chinese government and the Chinese people, but this is made impossible because many of us are on the sanctions list.”