Calling on the EU leaders to explicitly demonstrate solidarity with Lithuania and render all necessary support

Charles Michel, President of the European Council

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission

Josep Borrell Fontelles, Vice-President of the European Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy

Valdis Dombrovskis, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission / European Commissioner for Trade

Thierry Breton, European Commissioner for the Internal Market

We, the under-signed Members of the European Parliament, resolutely condemn
political and economic coercion of the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) against
Lithuania, and call on the EU leaders to explicitly demonstrate solidarity with
Lithuania and render all necessary support.

The aggressive rhetoric of PRC officials, as well as the unexplained and undeclared
measures which de facto constitute sanctions that ban Lithuanian-made products and
those from other countries with Lithuanian components from entering the Chinese
market are deplorable. Such unlegislated actions and practices violate not only all
international and WTO rules of trade, but also directly impact underlying principles of
the EU Single Market, and that is why they must be addressed by the European Union
jointly. Moreover, this is not the first time the PRC has been using coercive behavior
against the EU Member State, as demonstrated by the pressure applied on the
President of the Czech Senate, Miloš Vystrčil, in connection to his visit to Taiwan,
and numerous cases before.

We refuse any form of pressure and condemn threats regarding the independent right
of countries to develop relationship with Taiwan in line with their national interests
and shared values of democracy and human rights without foreign interference. The
recent decision of Lithuania and Taiwan to exchange representative offices do not
themselves signify anything extraordinary, nor do they challenge the One China
policy.

We recall that in the European Parliament Recommendation of 21 October 2021 on
EU-Taiwan political relations and cooperation, the European Parliament urged to
“encourage increased economic, scientific, cultural, political and people-to-people
exchanges, meetings and cooperation between the EU and Taiwan, and exchanges
with the participation of Member State representatives, including at the most senior
levels, so as to fully reflect the dynamic, multi-faceted and close cooperation between
the EU and Taiwan as like-minded partners.”

Moreover, the European Parliament has stressed its clear political position to
“welcome the plans to set up a Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania;
condemn the Chinese government’s reaction of imposing economic sanctions on

Lithuania; express its support and solidarity with Lithuania in this regard, take
appropriate measures, and call on the Council to do likewise.”
At the same time, it is important to stress that these unexplained coercive measures of
the PRC against Lithuania and the EU are taking place in a context of increasing PRC
aggression against neighbors and other third countries, disregard for international law
and norms as witnessed in the destabilising actions in the South China Sea and
breaching of the Sino-British Declaration, as well as the dire human rights situation
across mainland China and Hong Kong.

In this context, we firmly believe that failing to respond to the PRC’s actions would
embolden it to engage in further coercion against Lithuania or any other EU Member
States in the future. It will also allow PRC to weaken EU unity and intensify “divide
and rule” practices among the EU Member States as well as seek to diminish the EU’s
role globally. Therefore, if the PRC will continue its coercive measures damaging the
EU Single Market, the EU should consider responding with defensive measures vis-a-
vis the PRC.

That is why we welcome the recent joint statements of solidarity with Lithuania by
US State Secretary A. Blinken and German Foreign Affairs Minister A. Baerbock and
their promise to stand against the PRC intimidation against Lithuania. Also, we
welcome the news, that the French Presidency in the Council of the EU is ready to
push for EU action to resist Beijing coercive actions even before the new EU anti-
coercion instrument will be adopted. We urge EU institutions to follow suit and to
take bold leadership in defending basic principles of the Single Market against the
PRC intimidation. We cannot allow the PRC to undermine the EU’s basic values and
principles.

Robert Schuman believed that Europe will be made through concrete achievements
which first create a de facto solidarity. Supporting our Member States as they face
coercion from outside is a crucial component of this. We, therefore call on you to
resolutely demonstrate solidarity with Lithuania in both words as in deeds, to defend
the principles of the EU integrated Single Market and to ensure that no EU Member
State, irrespective of size, has to shoulder such pressure alone.

Signed:

Photo source: lrv.lt