Britain, France and Germany warn China over Taiwan waters activity

Britain, France and Germany’s offices in Taipei issued a rare joint warning Wednesday over Chinese activity in waters east of Taiwan, saying the moves threatened regional stability, freedom of navigation and the safety of international shipping. The statement, carried through the British Office Taipei, German Institute Taipei and French Office in Taipei, singled out what it called “novel Chinese activity” in the waters east of the self-ruled island.

The fact that London, Paris and Berlin spoke together gave the warning added diplomatic weight. None of the three has formal ties with Taipei, so their de facto missions rarely move in lockstep on Taiwan-related security matters. By coordinating publicly, the three governments signaled that Chinese pressure around Taiwan is no longer being treated as a narrow cross-strait issue, but as a broader challenge touching maritime law, trade routes and the rules that govern movement through the East China Sea and nearby waters.

The United States, Britain, France and Germany all raised alarms over the activity off Taiwan’s east coast, widening the response beyond Europe. Taiwan’s foreign ministry thanked the four countries for their statements and said freedom of navigation is essential to global trade. That language reflected the stakes around Taiwan’s eastern waters, where shipping lanes, surveillance routes and military signaling overlap, and where even coast guard deployments can be used to normalize pressure without crossing into open naval confrontation.

China’s coast guard said its June patrols east of Taiwan were conducted in response to Japan and the Philippines’ planned maritime border delimitation talks. Taiwan said it spotted only two Chinese ships to its southeast during the June 1 patrols and said they did not enter restricted waters. Chinese state media described the activity as lawful patrols and part of efforts to expand regular maritime law enforcement east of Taiwan.

The episode fits a pattern of escalating maritime messaging around the island, with coast guard patrols and survey operations carrying political weight far beyond their immediate footprint. European governments have now shown a greater willingness to comment publicly when Beijing’s actions near Taiwan appear to test the status quo, and the joint warning suggests that Europe sees Indo-Pacific stability as tied directly to its own commercial and security interests.