The three nations issued a joint statement saying that the safety of seafarers and vessels must be ‘guaranteed and respected.’
The UK, France, and Germany issued a joint statement on June 24, warning that the Chinese regime’s activities off the east coast of Taiwan are a threat to regional stability and freedom of navigation.
Earlier this month, China sent coast guard ships into the waters east of the island for a “special maritime traffic law-enforcement operation.”
The British Office in Taipei—which acts as a de facto embassy—issued a joint statement with French and German equivalents in the Taiwanese capital, in which they said, “We have noted with concern novel Chinese activity in the waters east of Taiwan.”
“These actions threaten regional stability and the freedom of navigation and safety of international shipping,” the statement said.
“We reiterate our opposition to any unilateral change to the status quo, particularly by threat or use of force or coercion. It is fundamental that all navigational rights and freedoms and the safety of seafarers and vessels are guaranteed and respected.”
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which has never ruled Taiwan, considers the self-ruled island to be a renegade province and has never ruled out the possibility of using force to seize it.
The Chinese regime does not recognize any separate Taiwanese sovereignty, and in recent years has frequently sent military jets and ships close to the island on an almost daily basis.
China said the coast guard operation was in response to statements from Japan and the Philippines that they would begin formal talks on their maritime boundaries.
Taiwan’s coast guard said Beijing has no jurisdiction in its waters and said it would “forcefully” drive away Chinese ships to maintain “freedom and safety of navigation.”
