The European Union is throwing its weight behind member state Lithuania by filing a formal complaint against China at the World Trade Organization this week.
China’s actions are widely interpreted as a retaliation for Lithuania’s 2.8 million people leaving the 17+1, a regional group established by Beijing, and agreeing to host a Taiwanese representative office in its capital with the name “Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania” rather than “Taipei Representative Office,” as such offices are titled elsewhere.
While some in the EU questioned Lithuania’s consultation with other member states before announcing its decisions on China and Taiwan, Jonathan Hackenbroich, a policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, told VOA that those concerns paled in comparison to the seriousness of the threat China’s actions posed to the EU’s political and economic integrity.
While China’s aggressive thinking and actions should be a source of significant concern for European firms and governments the EU must do more to quickly identify and successfully resist China’s coercive measures against nations that refuse to comply with its demands.
“Look, everyone can understand this is a test,” said Benjamin Haddad, senior director of the Europe Center at the Washington-based Atlantic Council. “This is a test of whether Europeans will break off their solidarity with one of their smaller members in exchange of economic interests.”
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In The Trade War With China The European Union Rallies Behind Lithuania
