Lai told AFP in his first interview with a global news agency since taking office in May 2024 that if China were to take Taiwan, Beijing would become "more aggressive" and would next turn its expansionist ambitions to Japan, the Philippines and other countries in the Indo-Pacific region.

Beijing's foreign ministry accused Lai on Thursday of provoking aggression, calling him a "war instigator".

"Lai Ching-te's remarks once again exposed his stubborn pro-independence nature, fully proving that he is a peace disruptor, crisis creator, and war instigator," foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian told a regular news conference.

"No matter what Lai Ching-te says or does, it cannot change the historical and legal fact that Taiwan is part of China's territory," he said.

China claims Taiwan is part of its territory and has threatened to use force to bring the self-governed island under its control.

Taiwan has stepped up efforts to strengthen security and economic ties with Europe, its third-largest export market, at a time when questions have been raised over US willingness to defend the island against a Chinese attack.

In his interview with AFP, Lai called for greater defence and artificial intelligence cooperation between Taiwan and Europe.

Taipei, which makes nearly all of the world's most advanced semiconductors, would also support its chip companies investing overseas, including in Europe, he said.

The concentration of chip production in Taiwan has long been seen as a protection against an attack by China and an incentive for the United States to defend it.

In response, Beijing's foreign ministry insisted efforts to boost cooperation between Taiwan and Europe would be futile as a means of defending the island.

"Seeking independence by relying on foreign support and using force to refuse reunification are acts of sheer folly, and doomed to fail," Lin told reporters.

While Taiwan has spent billions of dollars upgrading its military in the past decade, it remains under pressure by Washington to do more in that area -- and for its semiconductor manufacturers to increase production capacity in the United States.