WARSAW, Oct 13 (Reuters) – Taiwan’s foreign minister warned the European Union that dependence on Chinese suppliers poses a risk to the bloc’s freedom during a speech in Poland on Tuesday ahead of a summit in Brussels where trade with Beijing will be high on the agenda.
EU leaders will discuss China as the first point of their summit starting on Thursday, as Brussels attempts to reduce the bloc’s trade deficit and mitigate what many see as the risks of becoming over-dependent on Beijing in sensitive sectors.
“Because China’s authoritarian ideology is fundamentally incompatible with Europe’s democracy, dependence on China is not merely an economic risk, it’s a threat to European freedom and sovereignty itself,” Lin Chia-lung said in a speech at the Warsaw Security Forum.
“A Europe controlled through its supply chains would be a Europe that had surrendered part of its liberty.”
The Chinese Embassy in Warsaw did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment. China routinely denounces visits by Taiwanese officials abroad and refuses to speak to Taiwan President Lai Ching-te, saying he is a “separatist”.
Lin said that trade with Taiwan benefits Europe.
“Taiwan and Europe share the values that matter most – democracy, freedom, human rights and the rule of law,” he said.
“The Taiwan model has helped power innovation and prosperity in Silicon Valley, and it can do the same for Europe too.”
While Taiwan foreign ministers previously only rarely visited Europe, due to Beijing’s objections, Lin has gone several times since he assumed his current position more than two years ago, including to Poland.
Taiwan has sought closer ties with Europe, especially since the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Europe has its own disputes with China, over both trade imbalances and also its criticism of what it sees as Chinese support for Russia.
Poland, like most countries, has no formal diplomatic ties with Chinese-claimed Taiwan. The democratically elected government in Taiwan rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims, and says it has a right to engage with the rest of the world on equal footing.
(Reporting by Alan Charlish in Warsaw, additional reporting by Ben Blanchard in Taipei, editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
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