The Formosa Club, a group of European lawmakers, has sent a joint letter to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the European Union, urging support for Lithuania's efforts to deepen ties with Taiwan, according to Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA).
The letter, issued on Aug. 25, was addressed to David Maria Sassoli, president of the European Parliament; Charles Michel, president of the European Council; and Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, MOFA said Thursday.
It was also copied to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, the foreign ministers of the 27 EU member states, and Lithuania's president, vice president and parliamentary speaker, MOFA said.
"We, Co-Chairs of the Formosa Club in the European Parliament and national parliaments, write to express our solidarity with Lithuania as the People's Republic of China intensifies its campaign of political and economic pressure targeting Lithuania over the decision to establish representative offices with Taiwan," the lawmakers said in the letter, which was made public by MOFA.
The Formosa Club is a group of cross-party European legislators who are working to enhance Europe-Taiwan relations and help connect Taiwan with the rest of the world.
Since Aug. 10, when China recalled its ambassador to Lithuania and demanded Vilnius do the same, China has accelerated its "blatant economic coercion" by announcing that it would stop all direct freight trains to Vilnius in August and September, and it is now attempting to bar the export of key raw materials to Lithuania, according to the legislators.
"More worryingly, Chinese state media, in an open threat, urged Russia and Belarus to join hands with China to 'punish' Lithuania," they said. "All of this took place as the Baltic state continues to face an escalating number of hybrid attacks from both Belarus and Russia and waves of refugees from war-torn countries are being shipped to its borders from Belarus."
The group of European legislators said that Lithuania, as a sovereign country, has every right to advance economic and cultural ties with Taiwan and establish respective offices, as the European Union and 15 member states have already done.
The letter says that China's coercive actions against Lithuania are not only a flagrant violation of international diplomatic norms, but also a brazen attack on Lithuania's sovereignty.
"For all of these reasons, China's assertive actions warrant a far stronger response from the European Union," the parliamentarians wrote. "We, therefore, urge the European Union to take a more proactive approach in demonstrating solidarity with Vilnius and supporting its decision to expand ties with Taiwan."
As a member of NATO, Lithuania should also have the backing of the democratic alliance when dealing with these threats, the parliamentarians said, urging NATO to express its full solidarity and support for Lithuania in these challenging times.
"...While we reiterate our support for Lithuania's decision to allow Taiwan to open an office in Vilnius, we once again urge the European Union and NATO to take concrete actions to support Lithuania to ensure that China's diplomatic bullying will not work," the Formosa Club wrote.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel