TAIPEI (Taiwan) — In a resolution passed on Thursday (Sept. 15), the European Parliament denounced China for continued military action and provocations against Taiwan and vowed to further deepen European Union-Taiwan ties.

According to a press release, the resolution was adopted after a landslide vote of 424 in favor, 14 against, and 46 abstentions. The resolution condemned China for holding large-scale live-fire military exercises around Taiwan, launching “intense cyber-attacks against the Taiwanese authorities and private sector,” as well as for its military provocations and economic sanctions following U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit in early August.

It recognized that through the series of actions, China has “revealed its true intentions about its future path,” which is at odds with the rest of the world’s. The European Parliament wrote that it has reason to believe China’s recent actions were planned in advance, “and that the country’s leadership was simply waiting for a suitable pretext to launch its operations and to test both Taiwan’s capacity to respond and the West’s willingness to react.”

It is therefore concerned that “an unwanted error or accident could set off a series of escalatory moves.”

Meanwhile, the European Parliament applauded Taiwan’s government and political leaders for their “measured and responsible reaction” to China’s provocations. It wrote that it is up to the people of Taiwan to decide how they want to live and how they want to pursue their relations with Beijing.

The resolution thus called for the EU to “assume a stronger role when it comes to the situation in the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific as a whole.” It urged member states to increase their economic and diplomatic presence throughout the Indo-Pacific region, including in Taiwan, and extended an invitation to Taiwan’s parliament to send a delegation on a visit to deepen parliamentary cooperation.

The document also highlighted Lithuania’s role in recent affairs, writing that the country faced “massive economic sanctions and pressure” from China after it agreed to open the Taiwanese representative office in Lithuania. It made Lithuania an example, calling on other EU member states to follow suit and strengthen their political relations with Taiwan.