EU Urged to Intensify Taiwan Ties Amid China's Rising Aggression

A European Commission report highlights China's growing aggression towards Taiwan, stressing the need for the EU to enhance relations with Taipei. Authored by former Finnish President Sauli Niinisto, the report warns of the global repercussions on supply chains if tensions escalate, impacting both Europe and the Indo-Pacific region.

The European Commission has voiced concerns over China's escalating aggression towards Taiwan and called for the European Union to strengthen its connections with Taipei, a report detailed on Friday in the Taipei Times states. The report, titled 'Safer Together: Strengthening Europe's Civilian and Military Preparedness and Readiness', evaluates the geopolitical challenges confronting the EU and offers recommendations for decision-makers within the bloc's institutions and member states through 2029.

According to the report, Sauli Niinisto, the former President of Finland and special advisor to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, expressed grave concerns about how China's burgeoning national power is altering the strategic balance in the Indo-Pacific. As outlined in the Taipei Times, Niinisto pointed to China's long-standing ambitions to absorb Taiwan and noted its coercive policies against neighboring countries like India, the Philippines, and Vietnam as destabilizing forces in the region that could pose broader risks.

The potential economic and security fallout from Chinese aggression against Taiwan, or in the broader South China Sea, could have devastating impacts on Europe and globally, the report warns. Severe disruptions to European and world supply chains could result from moves by China—whether through outright force or subtler coercive tactics such as blockades or geographical sieges. This would have significant ramifications due to the intertwined economic dependencies that various nations, including those in the Euro-Atlantic, hold with both China and Taiwan, especially in sectors like advanced semiconductors.

(With inputs from agencies.)