Despite Beijing‘s efforts to isolate Taiwan diplomatically, the island nation is nonetheless receiving added attention. In the final communique at the London summit, the foreign ministers of the G7 nations expressed support for including Taiwan in the work of WHO and WHA and granting the country the ability to share its experience with fighting COVID-19. The ministers also expressed concerns over the growing tensions in the Taiwan Strait, where China has been steadily stepping up its gray zone activities.
The support for Taiwan’s inclusion in the work of WHO has also been voiced by the Czech Senate and the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Slovak Parliament. While Taiwan participated in the annual WHA meeting between 2009-2016, Beijing blocked its participation after the victory of Tsai Ing-wen.
Taiwan is not officially recognized by any EU nation, a status unlikely to change anytime soon. Adherence to the One China Policy by each of the respective nations allows for quite a little space to maneuver, just as the visit of the Czech Senate President Miloš Vystrčil to Taiwan last year proved. However, in the context of the complicated ratification process of the EU-China investment agreement, the time might be right to jump-start similar negotiations with Taiwan, even if there still seems to be a lack of interest on the European side. Still, it is important that the EU does not see Taiwan only as an alternative to China and rather approaches it on its own merit.
The importance of Taiwan for European economies is exemplified by the semiconductor industry. In light of the global shortages, the EU has been trying to woo Taiwanese stalwart manufacturer TMSC to invest in setting up local foundries in Europe. However, it seems that so far Brussels has been unsuccessful, with TMSC planning to expand production in the US instead.