Professor Brown said: “It would pitch the two greatest economic powers in human history against each other.
“It would decimate the global supply chains because of tech reliance on high-tech semiconductors from a single factor in Taiwan.
“It would create a new world order where the US and China were enemies, not just competitors.”
General Sir Richard Barrons, former head of the UK Joint Forces, has said a war between the Taiwan and China could be sparked over a simple mistake.
Barrons told The Sun: “Clumsy rhetoric could push the other side into a corner where they act because they feel they have to respond to their own public opinion. Wars can start for really bad reasons.
“And that’s the greatest danger over Taiwan – even though everyone sees it would be catastrophic for the global economy and global security.
“With this sabre-rattling that goes on around Taiwan, it can result in an incident nobody wanted that leads to a process of escalation that people can’t control – because it’s driven by red mist, not political logic. That risk absolutely exists.
Barrons said that a “misunderstanding” is the most likely thing that could lead to a “huge escalation” in the region.
“In an environment where there’s plenty of rhetoric and where there is no rational reason for going to war, you could have an incident with, for example, a hot-headed military command,” Barrons continued.
“It might just be a clash between two jets, or it might be a clash between a ship and a jet that results in something dramatic.
“That’s an aircraft shot down or a ship sunk which begins to force leadership into a corner. That’s the risk.
“If you look at what’s happEned in in another circumstances in history between big powers, there’s an incident that just unlocks the steam, you end up in uncontrolled escalation.
“It’s a bit like the way the First World War started.”
