A dilemma has been burning a hole in British officials’ desks. In fact, two holes. One case concerns the singer Taylor Swift. Would she be whisked through the streets of London with a VIP police escort for her concerts at Wembley Stadium in August? Swift is not a politician, but she represents a music business that gives joy to millions and generates much-needed jobs, taxes, and profits. Her previous concert in Austria was canceled because of a bomb threat. Leaving her stuck in London’s traffic would be rude and perhaps dangerous.
British decision-makers decided to be generous. Swift got her blue flashing lights, though a row is now raging about free concert tickets for politicians.
The other case involves Tsai Ing-wen, Taiwan’s ex-president. Her request was more modest: use of the diplomatic VIP channel at London’s Heathrow Airport at the start of a trip to meet British lawmakers who support the island’s democracy. The guardians of Britain’s security first agreed to this when the visit was planned some months ago. It is a reasonable wish: British MPs visiting Taiwan are treated with great courtesy and generosity. Making the geopolitical superstar queue at passport control along with regular travelers would be a boon to the bullies of Bejing, who claim that Taiwan is a rebel province and that its rulers are imposters.
Then, with David Lammy’s first trip to China as foreign secretary looming, officials got cold feet. They asked the hosts — British lawmakers who support Taiwan — to postpone the trip.
This makes Britain look clueless and cowardly. Officials could have planned Lammy’s trip before or safely after Tsai’s visit to London. Or they could have just decided to tough it out. Other countries are a lot firmer. Tsai will be meeting lawmakers and other dignitaries in Prague, Paris, and Brussels during the other legs of her European trip. That will doubtless prompt spluttering fury in Beijing. Fine, but the best response to that is to let them splutter. The more countries treat Taiwan decently, the harder it is to feign outrage. It is also worth underlining that lawmakers in Western political systems act independently; they are not controlled by their governments or by the ruling party. Chinese Communist Party (CCP) bureaucrats may struggle to grasp this. We should help them.
By contrast, signaling weakness just guarantees more bullying. The CCP is trying to create a “new normal” in which even the slightest official or public recognition of Taiwan’s existence is impermissible. This is why Taiwan had to compete as “Chinese Taipei” at the Olympics in Paris. Chinese pressure has, in past years, blocked Taiwanese participation in the Lord Mayor’s Show, the annual street party for the City of London. Business websites do not list Taiwan in their drop-down menus for the choice of country. This is not just humiliating for the direct victims. It is humiliating for everyone who helps implement this neurotic Chinese taboo.
The damage is not only symbolic. Taiwan matters hugely to Britain’s security. It produces over 90% of the world’s advanced chips, vital to our competitiveness and to our critical national infrastructure. We should be worrying less about annoying the permanently angry communist bureaucrats in Beijing and more about offending our friendly suppliers in Taipei.
At stake is Britain’s credibility. If we let other countries push us around on small things, it salami-slices our deterrence when it comes to big things. Tsai’s postponed trip to Britain next year may not fill Wembley Stadium. But every self-respecting British public figure should be clamoring to see her. “Breaking all my rules to see you,” to quote Taylor Swift.
Edward Lucas is a Non-resident Senior Fellow and Senior Advisor at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA).
Europe’s Edge is CEPA’s online journal covering critical topics on the foreign policy docket across Europe and North America. All opinions are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the position or views of the institutions they represent or the Center for European Policy Analysis.
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