The group of 27 countries that make up the European Union are to discuss a potential diplomatic boycott of Beijing 2022 at a meeting this week ©Getty Images

A potential diplomatic boycott by European Union (EU) countries of the 2022 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in Beijing is set to be discussed at a meeting later this week but there is a warning that a decision is unlikely to be reached with the bloc split over what action to take.

France and The Netherlands have put it on the agenda for a meeting of the 27 countries that make up the EU on Thursday (December 16), but Luxembourg’s Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn has admitted a uniform approach is unlikely.

Lithuania, which is already facing a Chinese trade blockade after it developed closer ties with Taiwan, announced today that its Foreign Minister would not be attending Beijing 2022, which is due to begin on February 4.

"I'm not going," Gabrielius Landsbergis told reporters, ahead of discussions among EU Foreign Ministers.

The United States, Australia, Canada and United Kingdom has already announced it will not send any Government officials to attend the Games in the Chinese capital in protest against the country’s human rights record, including its alleged treatment of the Uyghur Muslim minority in the Xinjiang region.

Several countries have called for the EU to adopt a coordinated approach but any potential calls for a complete diplomatic boycott is unlikely because Hungary, China’s closest ally in the bloc, would be expected to veto it.

"I'm for a European approach but sometimes it is difficult to achieve," Asselborn told news agency Reuters.

"You know as well as I do that, we will not find a solution regarding the Olympic Games today or this week."

Lithuania's Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, right, has confirmed he will not be attending Beijing 2022, while Britain are also not sending any Government officials, including its Foreign Minister Liz Truss, left, to the Winter Olympic Games in the Chinese capital ©Getty Images
Lithuania's Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, right, has confirmed he will not be attending Beijing 2022, while Britain are also not sending any Government officials, including its Foreign Minister Liz Truss, left, to the Winter Olympic Games in the Chinese capital ©Getty Images

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian revealed last week that Paris should take a common stand with other EU countries.

Germany’s new Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has backed that stance.

Austria's Alexander Schallenberg claimed he was "very much in favour of a joint EU position" but appeared to warn against using the Olympics as a political pawn.

"We have a clear position on the human rights situation in China, but I don't think it is useful to let the Olympic Games artificially become a political event," he said.

China is the EU's second-largest trade partner and many large German firms, in particular, do not want to jeopardise business relationships.

Asselborn has called for European politicians to speak out instead on human rights issues in China.

"I think if we speak up there on the ground, this brings more benefit than if we politicians go into hiding," he said.