TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — U.K. Foreign Secretary James Cleverly warned that if China were to wage war against Taiwan, its economy would collapse.
He addded the U.K. wields influence over Beijing because it is concerned about reduced trade with the West.
The Independent reported that Cleverly sp during a Conservative Party event. He said that an invasion of Taiwan would be a "massive failure of foreign policy" because “disruption across the Taiwan Strait is everybody’s business."
Referring to the Taiwan Strait, he said "huge international trade volumes go through that body of water." He added a war in the region would be a "a catastrophically bad thing for the global economy."
He so said that such a conflict would lead to the "collapse of the Chinese economy." He noted the country's economic doldrums demonstrate that, "the Chinese economy is not all-powerful."
Cleverly stressed that preventing a war over Taiwan is "an absolute core plank of U.K. foreign policy." After speaking with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (王毅) during his trip to China in August, Clevery believes that the Chinese are aware of the potential economic damage that could result from their policies.
During his meeting with Wang, Cleverly said countries such as the Philippines, the U.K., U.S., and Australia are starting to reduce their trade volumes with China and it is beginning to have a cummulative impact. According to Cleverly, when he pointed out these trends, Wang "listened very, very closely" and his cadres looked "very intently."
