European foreign policy officials yesterday sought to present a tough stance against China’s threats against Taiwan, after comments by French President Emmanuel Macron drew a backlash for being perceived as weak.
China has over the past few days held intense military drills around Taiwan.
German Minister for Foreign Affairs Annalena Baerbock, addressing the issue at a news conference in Beijing alongside Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Qin Gang (秦剛), said any attempt by China to control Taiwan would be unacceptable and would have serious repercussions for Europe.
Photo: REUTERS
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Joseph Borrell echoed her remarks in a statement prepared for a speech due to be delivered in Beijing at the Center for China and Globalization think tank that had to be canceled due to him testing positive for COVID-19.
“A military escalation in the Taiwan Strait, through which ... 50 percent of world trade goes every day, would be a horror scenario for the entire world,” Baerbock said, adding that it would have “inevitable repercussions” for European interests.
In interviews published after his trip to China last week, which was meant to showcase European unity on China policy, Macron cautioned against being drawn into a crisis over Taiwan driven by an “American rhythm and a Chinese overreaction.”
While many of the remarks were not new, the timing of their publication, and their bluntness, annoyed many Western officials.
“The European Union’s position [on Taiwan] is consistent and clear,” Borrell said in his prepared remarks. “Any attempt to change the status quo by force would be unacceptable.”
Borrell also said that Europe’s future relationship with China depended on Beijing trying to use its influence to find a political solution to the Ukraine crisis.
“It will be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for the European Union to maintain a relationship of trust with China, which I would like to see, if China does not contribute to the search for a political solution based on Russia’s withdrawal from the Ukrainian territory,” Borrell said.
“Neutrality in the face of the violation of international law is not credible,” he said, adding an appeal for Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to speak with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and for China to provide more humanitarian aid to Ukrainians.
Xi has met Russian President Vladimir Putin twice, but not spoken with Zelenskiy, since Russia invaded Ukraine.
China stated its opposition to attacks on civilians and on nuclear facilities in a position paper on Ukraine published in February, but it has refrained from openly criticizing Russia for its invasion.
“President Xi’s visit to Moscow has demonstrated that no other country has a bigger influence on Russia than China,” Baerbock said.
“It is good that China has signalled to get engaged in finding a solution, but I have to say clearly that I wonder why China so far has not asked the aggressor Russia to stop the war,” she said. “We all know President Putin has the opportunity to do so any time he wants to.”
The Taiwanese passport ranked 33rd in a global listing of passports by convenience this month, rising three places from last month’s ranking, but matching its position in January last year. The Henley Passport Index, an international ranking of passports by the number of designations its holder can travel to without a visa, showed that the Taiwan passport enables holders to travel to 139 countries and territories without a visa. Singapore’s passport was ranked the most powerful with visa-free access to 192 destinations out of 227, according to the index published on Tuesday by UK-based migration investment consultancy firm Henley and Partners. Japan’s and
NATIONAL SECURITY THREAT: An official said that Guan Guan’s comments had gone beyond the threshold of free speech, as she advocated for the destruction of the ROC China-born media influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China content that threatens national security, the National Immigration Agency said yesterday. Guan Guan has said many controversial things in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” while expressing hope for expedited “reunification.” The agency received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification last year. After investigating, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and account for her actions. Guan Guan appeared as required,
Japan and the Philippines yesterday signed a defense pact that would allow the tax-free provision of ammunition, fuel, food and other necessities when their forces stage joint training to boost deterrence against China’s growing aggression in the region and to bolster their preparation for natural disasters. Japan has faced increasing political, trade and security tensions with China, which was angered by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remark that a Chinese attack on Taiwan would be a survival-threatening situation for Japan, triggering a military response. Japan and the Philippines have also had separate territorial conflicts with Beijing in the East and South China
A strong cold air mass is expected to arrive tonight, bringing a change in weather and a drop in temperature, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The coldest time would be early on Thursday morning, with temperatures in some areas dipping as low as 8°C, it said. Daytime highs yesterday were 22°C to 24°C in northern and eastern Taiwan, and about 25°C to 28°C in the central and southern regions, it said. However, nighttime lows would dip to about 15°C to 16°C in central and northern Taiwan as well as the northeast, and 17°C to 19°C elsewhere, it said. Tropical Storm Nokaen, currently
RSS