Why Taiwan Matters to Europe
![](https://www.isdp.eu/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/720x405_Taiwan_flag_wind_shutterstock-002.jpg)
Niklas Swanström, Agust Börjesson and Yi-Chieh Chen
The Taiwan issue is known to be sensitive for Beijing, one of its so-called core interests. Taiwan has no diplomatic recognition among European Union member states but informal relations and cooperation between Taiwan and Europe are nevertheless extensive in many areas. The position that Europe should steer clear of a conflict over Taiwan presupposes that it does not have a clear stake in maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. European interests are, however, far more intertwined with Taiwan and its security than what its lack of geographical proximity would initially suggest.
Understanding Taiwan’s significance to Europe is increasingly important in order to understand the foundations on which current relations rest and what Europe’s stake in the Taiwan Strait is. To examine and expound on why Taiwan matters to Europe, the Institute for Security and Development Policy (ISDP) has brought together four contributions from distinguished experts for a Special Paper. From different perspectives, these contributions expound on Taiwan’s significance to Europe. They offer insights in several areas including, how economically important Taiwan is to Europe, what a potential conflict in the Taiwan Strait would cost Europe and what role Taiwan’s democracy plays in its region and the international space. In addition, this volume offers valuable policy-oriented advice for its European audience going forward.
This Special Paper was undertaken as part of ISDP’s Taiwan Studies Project and serves as one of the first publications of its Stockholm Taiwan Center. We extend our sincere gratitude to the authors who contributed to this important and timely project. ISDP also extends its gratitude to the Taipei Mission in Sweden, whose support allowed for this project to be realized.
Related Publications
-
EU-Taiwan Semiconductor Supply Chain: Resilience amid the Digital and Green Transition
As the European Union (EU) sets ambitious goals of maximizing a ‘Digital Decade’ through its Digital Transition plan and attaining carbon neutrality in its Green Transition plan, technology becomes the […]
-
Beyond Debt: How China’s Ultralong Bonds Could Reshape Global Geopolitics
In a bid to revitalize its sluggish economy, China has announced the sale of $140 billion in ultralong bonds. This financial manoeuvre is set in a context marked by declining […]
-
ISDP Annual Report 2023
ISDP’s Annual Report for the year 2023. We look back on 2023, a year in which tensions and conflicts captured the strategic space in ISDP’s focus areas, making headlines around […]
-
Japan’s Energy Security in the Persian Gulf: Caught Between New and Old Challenges
The goal of this paper is to investigate the evolution of Japan’s energy strategy in the Persian Gulf and understand how intra-Asian competition for business opportunities in the region can […]
-
Hegemony at a Crossroads: The Inverse Dynamics of China’s Global Strategy
Here is my bold statement. Hard power projection decimates soft power but only for authoritarian states. In the early 21st century, I was living in Beijing and at that time […]