Against the backdrop of a likely visit by Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan, relations between the United States and China began to heat up already strained ties. Pelosi's visit to Taipei is viewed by China as a hint of the subsequent separation from China of territories that he considers its own.
"If anyone dares to separate Taiwan from China, the Chinese military should not hesitate to start a war, no matter the cost," the Chinese defence minister.
In turn, Nancy Pelosi said that she did not plan to visit Taiwan.
"In Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea and Japan, our delegation will hold high-level meetings to discuss how we can further advance our shared interests and values, including peace and security, economic growth and trade, the COVID-19 pandemic, the climate crisis, human rights and democratic governance," speaker Pelosi.
A senior diplomat from a NATO member state said the situation is not worrying so far but could easily escalate. In the worst case, America will switch its attention from helping Ukraine to resolving China-Taiwan relations.
Urmas Paet, deputy chairman of the foreign affairs committee of the European Parliament, expressed the opinion that it was Russia's war against Ukraine that increased the risk of China's aggression against Taiwan.
"The European Union must also be able to keep an eye on China's actions, including about Taiwan," Urmas Paet. "Full cooperation between the EU and the U.S. is essential both in terms of Russian aggression against Ukraine and also about China's actions in its neighbourhood."
Before Russia's war against Ukraine, Europe partly avoided talking about Taiwan. The island, with internationally recognized borders and a population of 23 million, is an independent state. However, China does not think so. After China promised Russia a "no limits partnership" and began to unfold the "Kremlin scenario" against Taiwan, Europe began to think about the previously unimaginable consequences of imposing sanctions on China, the world's second-largest economy.
"In the event of a military invasion, we have made it very clear that the EU, together with the United States and its allies, will take the same or even more serious measures than we have now taken against Russia," Jorge Toledo, the EU ambassador to China.
