Josep Borrell, the European Commission’s foreign affairs and security policy chief, has publicly stated that the EU “will not compromise” on its support for de facto Taiwanese independence.
There is an increasing fear that the island nation located off China’s eastern coast – independent from the mainland in all but name for over 70 years – is facing a possible invasion from its Communist neighbour, with Beijing to this day insisting that control of the island is its sovereign right.
The possibility of violence has provoked strongly-worded warnings from the likes of the United States, which has vowed it will give “unwavering” support to Taiwan.
Such sentiment has now been echoed by the European Commission, with a statement by Borrell on behalf of the body late last week confirming that the ruling EU body “will not compromise on its efforts to preserve the status quo” of Taiwanese de facto independence.
Though insisting that the EU will maintain its acceptance of the CCP’s “One China” policy – which effectively recognises Taiwan as being de jure part of the Communist nation – the Foreign Affairs Commissioner said that the EU would strongly oppose any attempts to challenge the island’s independence using force of arms.
“Maintaining stability and freedom of navigation in the Taiwan Strait is key for the EU’s and global economy, prosperity and security,” Borrell said.
“Therefore, the EU will not compromise on its efforts to preserve the status quo in the Strait,” the commissioner continued. “Any differences should be resolved exclusively by peaceful means.”
“The threat or use of force to unilaterally change the status quo is not acceptable,” he went on to warn.
Such a strongly worded statement comes at a time of wavering support within the EU for an independent Taiwan, with a number of senior politicians expressing concern that EU support for the island could drag the bloc into another military conflict.
The most prominent sceptic of such European support for Taiwan is French President Emmanuel Macron, who last month warned that the continent should not get itself involved in a potential hot war in East Asia when it cannot get a handle on the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
“Europeans cannot resolve the crisis in Ukraine; how can we credibly say on Taiwan, ‘watch out, if you do something wrong we will be there’?”, the President asked regarding increasing tensions in the region. He added that the EU risked becoming an American vassal state if it got itself involved in a power-struggle between it and China.
“If the tensions between the two superpowers heat up … we won’t have the time nor the resources to finance our strategic autonomy and we will become vassals,” Macron went on to say.
Although deeply upsetting many critics of China’s Communist party on both sides of the Atlantic, Macron’s warning on the issue was also met with significant praise from other European politicians.
“Macron is right,” Rolf Mützenich, the parliamentary leader of Germany’s ruling Social Democratic Party, remarked, with the left-wing politician openly agreeing with the French president that the EU must try “to formulate an independent role” in the region and avoid becoming a mere “appendage” of the United States.
