On Tuesday, European Parliament Vice President Nicola Beer began a three-day visit to Taipei -- leading the most senior EU legislative delegation to visit Taiwan. Beer told reporters after her arrival that the “family of democracies” need to support Taiwan after China’s crackdown on Hong Kong’s opposition and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

No ‘Blind Eye’
“We won’t have a blind eye on China’s threat to Taiwan,” Beer said. “Europe was late for Hong Kong. We won’t be late for Taiwan. There is no room for Chinese aggression in democratic Taiwan. For the moment, we witness war in Europe. We do not want to witness war in Asia. And so now it’s the moment to stand firm on the side of Taiwan.” 

China’s refusal to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has complicated its efforts to shore up relations with the Europe Union. Top European leaders haven’t responded to an invitation from Xi to meet him later this year in Beijing, the South China Morning Post reported, citing a person familiar with the matter. 

Eoin Treacy's view

This is a major escalation of rhetoric from Europe and the USA. China will bristle at what they consider direct interference in a domestic matter. The One China policy is the biggest red line the Communist Party has.

Xi Jinping is due to secure a third term because he argued his long-term rule was necessary to achieve reunification. There is no conceivable scenario where they will settle for official Taiwan independence. That’s why the status quo has persisted for so long. The only way the status quo can persist is if overt aggressive measures by China are met by similar defensive measures by the international community. There is a clear scope for a mistake that could have dire consequences.

It's one more reason to take a long hard look before overweighting investments in China.