Taiwan awaits the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to issue a clear warning to Beijing against the use of military force against the self-governing island during an upcoming visit to China.
In an interview with the dpa, Taiwan’s representative in Germany, Shieh Jhy-Wey, who acts as the island’s de facto ambassador, said that Scholz had already found clear words on this issue during his last visit to China in November 2022.
However, threats against Taiwan have increased since then, Shieh said.
“Maybe the Chinese didn’t really get the message back then,” Shieh said. It would therefore “not be bad if Mr. Scholz said that again in plain language.”
Scholz is traveling to China for three days on Saturday. He will meet President Xi Jinping and other Chinese government officials. He will be accompanied by three ministers and a business delegation.
Taiwan has had an independent government since 1949, but the communist People’s Republic of China considers the democratic island of 23 million people to be part of its territory and denies any form of official diplomatic contact between Taiwan and other countries.
Since Russia’s attack on Ukraine, fears have been growing that China could annex Taiwan. The Chinese leadership has repeatedly threatened to take the island by force.
Shieh pointed out that an invasion would specifically affect the interests of Germany and the EU.
Since the German and European economies are heavily dependent on semiconductors from Taiwan, China could use them as an “economic and technological weapon”.
Shieh encouraged Scholz to continue on the path of reducing economic dependence on China.
He also wanted Germany, like the US, Britain and France, to demonstrate a military presence in the strait between Taiwan and China. In May, another Bundeswehr frigate and a supply ship are scheduled to set off for the Pacific to underline Germany’s interest in the region with its important trade routes.
A similar mission had already taken place from August 2021 to February 2022. The frigate Bayern took part in maneuvers with allies, but avoided Taiwan. That was “disappointing,” said Shieh. It would be a “sign” to China if the upcoming mission turned out differently.
Shieh also hopes that Germany will work more closely with Taiwan. “Germany has a strategy towards China, but Germany is still allergic to Taiwan,” he said.