European Parliament Push Brussels to ‘Upgrade’ Partnership with Taiwan, Despite Beijing’s Opposition

The European Union indispensable deepen its ties with antiauthoritarian state Taiwan, said lawmakers successful a study approved connected Oct. 21, contempt beardown absorption from the Chinese regime.

The European Parliament adopted the report, titled the EU-Taiwan Political Relations and Cooperation, by an overwhelming bulk successful the French metropolis of Strasbourg, with 580 votes successful favor, 26 against, and 66 abstentions.

The non-binding study called for the EU to “urgently begin” preparations for a caller bilateral concern deal, an EU-Taiwan Bilateral Investment Agreement, with “the like-minded spouse successful which Europe shares galore communal values.”

They demanded changing the sanction of the bloc’s commercialized bureau successful Taipei to “European Union bureau successful Taiwan” to bespeak the upgraded bilateral ties, adjacent though neither the EU nor its members person authoritative diplomatic relations with Taiwan, according to the report.

European Parliament members (MEPs) urged the EU to bash much to code the escalated subject tensions betwixt Taiwan and the Chinese authorities and support the island’s democracy, the study said.

“There is perfectly nary clip near to hold until the U.S. comes up with a strategy,” said Hungarian MEP Katalin Cseh connected Oct. 20. “Europe indispensable pb a planetary conjugation to guarantee Taiwan’s practice successful multilateral organizations portion calling connected China to instantly extremity the subject amusement of unit successful the Taiwan Strait.”

At the opening of October, Taipei saw 150 warplanes flying into the island’s aerial defence portion successful 4 consecutive days. The defence curate warned Beijing volition beryllium susceptible of mounting a “full scale” penetration successful 4 years.

The Chinese authorities views the self-ruled land arsenic its ain territory to beryllium taken by unit if necessary. The authorities besides has a known way record of demanding different governments follow its stance connected Taiwan.

The Chinese Mission to the EU lashed retired astatine the study connected Thursday, informing the EU that adhering to its claims connected Taiwan is the “political foundation” of the 2 sides’ relations.

“Without a coagulated foundation, everything supra volition beryllium shaky,” the Mission said successful a statement.

The authorities had offered its “strong opposition” erstwhile the EU Foreign Affairs Committee adopted the solution connected Sep. 1.

“That Chinese Communist Party (CCP) efforts to halt this antiauthoritarian process were futile sends a beardown awesome from Strasbourg to Beijing,” Swedish MEP Charlie Weimers, the report’s rapporteur, said connected Twitter earlier Wednesday’s vote.

🇪🇺🇹🇼 EU Parliament contiguous votes connected the historical study connected EU-Taiwan governmental relations and cooperation. That Chinese Communist Party efforts to halt this antiauthoritarian process were futile sends a beardown awesome from Strasbourg to Beijing.

I impulse MEPs to ballot successful favour of my report. pic.twitter.com/fVIblYLoTE

— Charlie Weimers MEP 🇸🇪 (@weimers) October 20, 2021

Before the vote, Beijing’s envoy to the European Union Zhang Ming reportedly tried to unit the president of the European Parliament to power the outcome, according to a missive seen by the South China Morning Post.

Contrary to Beijing’s wish, the relations betwixt EU subordinate states and Taiwan person warmed up recently.

A delegation of French senators visited the land and held talks with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen connected Oct. 6. France’s overseas curate dismissed Beijing’s warning, saying senators are escaped to conscionable whomever they wish.

Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu volition commencement a travel to Eastern Europe, visiting countries including the Czech Republic and Lithuania from Oct. 23.

While the EU maintains its one-China policy, MEPs person pushed the bloc to adopt a much robust strategy to prosecute with the communist Chinese authorities to support its captious antiauthoritarian values successful a study adopted successful the Parliament past month.

Earlier this year, the EU leveled sanctions against CCP officials implicit their relation successful overseeing the repression of taste Muslim minorities successful Xinjiang, which led to Beijing slapping retaliatory sanctions against European politicians and entities. The deepening enactment led to the freezing of a bilateral commercialized woody successful May aft 7 years of negotiations.