EU-Taiwan relations have seen rapid changes in recent weeks: the European Parliament (EP) adopted a resolution calling for a deepening of EU-Taiwan relations; Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu visited Brussels; EP delegation visits Taiwan but last week in Vilnius, Lithuania opened a Taiwanese mission, the name of which includes the word “Taiwan”.
China considers Taiwan a separatist province, although the island has never been under the control of the communist government in Beijing. China is doing everything it can to prevent Taiwan from trying to operate as an independent state.
In other countries, the name of Taiwan ‘s capital, Taipei, is used in the names of Taiwan’ s embassies to respect Beijing ‘s “one China” policy, which does not allow Taiwan to be considered a separate country.
In response to Lithuania’s move, Beijing said it was lowering diplomatic relations with Vilnius. From now on, China’s interests in Lithuania will be represented not by an ambassador, but by a lower-ranking diplomat – the Plenipotentiary.
China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijiang said on Monday that the EU and Lithuania were acting contrary to the bloc’s commitment in 1975 to establish diplomatic relations with Beijing. At the time, Brussels had promised that all members of the bloc would take a position on Taiwan that was acceptable to China.
“The European Union should honor its promises, not break them. We urge Lithuania and the European Union to genuinely adhere to the one-China principle and to live up to their political commitment to Taiwan in good faith. Those who think Taiwan can be used as a convenient tool to “It will not change the fact that mainland and Taiwan belong to the same China.
The European Commission (EC) has announced the opening of its Taiwan office In Lithuania is not considered a breach of the “one China” principle. Brussels has also called on Beijing not to put economic and political pressure on Lithuania.
Politicians in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, EU Member States, have also developed closer relations with Taiwan in recent years.
In 2019, the Czech capital, Prague, broke its twinning agreement with Beijing and signed such an agreement with Taipei, but last year Taiwanese Speaker Milos Wistril visited Taiwan. In October, Taiwanese officials visited the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Lithuania, provoking Beijing’s anger.
China was also unhappy with the first official EP delegation visit to Taiwan in early November. Beijing called it a “provocation.”
Rafael Glukmann, head of the EP delegation from the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats, opposed the Chinese government: “Visiting Taiwan is not a provocation. That should be our normal practice. That is our message. that we care about our relations with Taiwan, the less likely it is that Taiwan will end up in a real conflict with Beijing. “
In November, the EC set out to present the EU’s new strategy for trade and economic relations with Taiwan. It would have provided for more regular meetings, closer coordination in strategic areas such as semiconductors, and more frequent visits by high-level officials.
However, the EU’s plans to take relations with Taiwan to a new level have been postponed. Sources in the Brussels corridors claim that this is due to the reluctance of Germany, the most influential member of the bloc, to worsen relations with China, which is the largest export market for many German companies.
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