Deadline looms for EU’s WTO case against China alleging coercion of Lithuania

The European Union has until Friday to tell the World Trade Organization whether it intends to resume its legal action against Beijing over the alleged coercion of EU member state Lithuania in 2021 after a blazing row over Taiwan.

The case – which will otherwise automatically expire – is seen by some as a test of the EU’s assertiveness towards Beijing in the era of US President Donald Trump’s second term in the White House, which began on Monday.

Lithuania’s exports to China were wiped out virtually overnight in November 2021, according to official customs data, after it permitted the opening of a controversially named “Taiwanese representative office” in its capital, Vilnius.

Offices representing the self-ruled island – which Beijing regards as part of its territory, to be reunited by force, if necessary – are traditionally referred to in Europe as being there on behalf of Taipei.

Most countries, including the US, do not consider Taiwan as an independent state. However, Washington and its allies are opposed to any unilateral change to the status quo.

When Lithuanian exporters found their country had been removed from China’s national customs system – leaving them unable to send their goods – the EU took the case to the WTO.