Month: March 2025

Source: Republic of China Taiwan

November 22, 2024
No. 427

Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung led a 59-member delegation from the Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance (TEDIBOA) and 20 related Taiwanese companies to Vilnius, Lithuania, to attend the Drone Industry Business Forum on November 21. The event was cohosted by the Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania and Lithuania’s Innovation Agency.
 
Minister Lin and Legislator Wang Ting-yu, Convener of the Legislative Yuan Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, delivered remarks on Taiwan’s behalf. Vice Minister of National Defense Monika Koroliovienė, Director of the Innovation Agency Romualda Stragienė, and President of the Lithuanian Confederation of Industrialists (LPK) Vidmantas Janulevičius spoke on behalf of Lithuania. During the forum, Minister Lin also witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the TEDIBOA and the Lithuanian Defense and Security Industries Association (LGSPA), which underlined the commitment of Taiwan and Lithuania to jointly establishing a democratic drone supply chain.
 
In his remarks, Minister Lin spoke about the serious threat posed by such authoritarian states as China and Russia as they continued to deploy gray-zone tactics, economic coercion, and other means to pressure democratic nations. Noting that the security of Europe and the Indo-Pacific were closely interconnected, he urged like-minded partners to come together to safeguard their hard-won free and democratic way of life. Explaining that President Lai Ching-te had identified the Five Trusted Industry Sectors in a bid to bolster economic resilience through Taiwan’s innovative and technological strengths, Minister Lin said that Taiwan would employ integrated diplomacy to reinforce economic and trade collaboration with partners worldwide and thereby promote mutual prosperity. He also stated that Taiwan had already proven to the world that it was an indispensable partner in democratic supply chains and that it would continue to share its experience with Lithuania and other democracies. He described the development of close bilateral ties since the opening of Taiwan’s representative office in Vilnius as a model for mutual assistance and cooperation between democratic countries. He said that, given the potential for drone industrial development in Taiwan and Lithuania, he was confident that this new domain would become a success story of bilateral collaboration, and added that Taiwan looked forward to working with the new government of Lithuania to further enhance a bilateral partnership of mutual benefit and shared prosperity. 
 
Also speaking at the forum, Legislator Wang said that he had accompanied Minister Lin on the trip to demonstrate Taiwan’s support for Lithuania. He pointed out that since both countries stood on the front line of democracy against the threat of authoritarian expansion by such regimes as China and Russia, they should engage in close industrial cooperation so as to jointly enhance economic resilience. Citing Taiwan’s commitment to a spirit of supreme excellence for producing the robust manufacturing base that prevailed in the country today, Legislator Wang pledged that Taiwan would uphold this enterprising approach in the drone sector and work steadfastly with like-minded partners to bolster democratic supply chains.
 
Vice Minister Koroliovienė noted in her remarks that Taiwan and Lithuania shared the values of freedom and democracy and that Lithuania anticipated building on this solid existing foundation to strengthen bilateral cooperation. She said that the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and the threat to democratic countries from authoritarian expansion highlighted the urgent need to enhance national defense and all-out civilian defense, as well as to strengthen asymmetric capabilities through the development of the drone and counterdrone industries. She stated that Lithuania would continue to deepen cooperation with Indo-Pacific countries and that it hoped to pursue strategic collaboration with Taiwan in the drone industry so as to create a democratic defense supply chain. Director Stragienė and LPK President Janulevičius conveyed similar expectations in their remarks. 
 
This first Drone Industry Business Forum coorganized by Taiwan and Lithuania attracted participants from more than 40 companies from Lithuania and Ukraine. Interactions were lively at the event, which was attended by more than 200 people, including officials from the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of the Economy and Innovation. With staunch government support from both sides, Taiwan and Lithuania will use this platform to foster industrial linkages and jointly create business opportunities in drone markets in Europe and beyond. Minister Lin’s presence at the head of the delegation to the forum underscored the importance he places on the bilateral partnership and his commitment to engage proactively with Lithuania’s new government. (E)

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MOFA response to UK parliament passing motion reaffirming that UNGA Resolution 2758 did not determine Taiwan’s status

November 29, 2024 

Following a debate on November 28, the UK House of Commons unanimously passed a motion on the international status of Taiwan affirming that United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution 2758 did not mention Taiwan or establish PRC sovereignty over Taiwan and was silent on the status of Taiwan in the UN. Responding to the motion on behalf of the UK government, Catherine West, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Indo-Pacific at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, stated that the United Kingdom was of the view that UNGA Resolution 2758 decided that only the People’s Republic of China should represent China at the UN, that it did not determine the status of Taiwan, and that it should not therefore be used to preclude Taiwan’s meaningful participation in the UN or the wider international system. She pointed out that the United Kingdom opposed any attempt to broaden the interpretation of the resolution to rewrite history, which she said would not be in the interests of the Taiwanese people, the United Kingdom, or the global community.
 
The passage of this motion by the UK parliament underscored its staunch support for Taiwan. Furthermore, through Ms. West’s comments, the UK government publicly expressed for the first time its position on UNGA Resolution 2758 and underlined Taiwan’s wrongful exclusion from important international cooperation and dialogue mechanisms. This marked a new milestone in Taiwan’s efforts to counter China’s distortion of the resolution. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) strongly affirms and sincerely appreciates the support of the United Kingdom. 
 
The motion was introduced by Blair McDougall, a member of the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee, and cosigned by 16 members of parliament from the Labour Party, the Conservative Party, the Liberal Democrats, the Scottish National Party, and other political parties, including British-Taiwanese All-Party Parliamentary Group Chair Sarah Champion and Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) Cochair for the United Kingdom Iain Duncan Smith. It fully demonstrated the firm commitment of both governing and opposition parliamentarians in the United Kingdom to supporting Taiwan’s international status and participation. 
 
The UK House of Commons was the fifth national parliament in the world—after Australia, the Netherlands, Guatemala, and Canada—to pass such a motion since IPAC adopted a model resolution on UNGA Resolution 2758 for its members’ reference at its annual summit in July. The European Parliament has also approved a similar measure. MOFA sincerely thanks all parties once again for their support.

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MOFA response to G7 foreign ministers’ statement reaffirming importance of cross-strait peace and support for Taiwan’s international participation

November 27, 2024 

The Group of Seven (G7) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting was held in Fiuggi and Anagni, Italy, from November 25 to 26. A statement issued following the meeting on November 26 reaffirmed that maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait was indispensable to international security and prosperity. It called for the peaceful resolution of cross-strait issues and backed Taiwan’s meaningful participation in international organizations. The statement also reiterated the importance of upholding a free and open Indo-Pacific, and it expressed serious concern about the situation in the East and South China Seas as well as strong opposition to any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) sincerely welcomes and appreciates the continuing staunch support extended to Taiwan by G7 member nations. 
 
As a responsible country in the Indo-Pacific, Taiwan will continue to enhance collaboration with G7 members and take concrete action to safeguard the core values of democracy, freedom, human rights, and the rule of law. It will maintain cooperation with like-minded partners to uphold the rules-based international order and jointly pursue peace, stability, and prosperity in the region and beyond.

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MOFA response to false claims regarding Taiwan in joint statement between PRC and Brazil

November 21, 2024

Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on November 20 signed and issued the Joint Statement Between the People’s Republic of China and the Federative Republic of Brazil on Jointly Building the China-Brazil Community with a Shared Future for a More Just World and a More Sustainable Planet. According to the statement, Brazil reiterated support for the “one China principle” and said that Taiwan was an inalienable part of Chinese territory. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) strongly protests and condemns these spurious claims that undermine Taiwan’s sovereignty.
 
MOFA reiterates that the Republic of China (Taiwan) is an independent and sovereign nation; that neither the ROC (Taiwan) nor the PRC is subordinate to the other; and that the PRC has never governed Taiwan for a single day. These are objective and universally understood facts. Taiwan is a modern, democratic nation that actively defends its democratic system and respects human rights and the rule of law. No statement distorting Taiwan’s sovereign status can alter the international consensus as to the situation across the Taiwan Strait. 
 
Brazil is a country that pursues the core values of freedom, democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. MOFA calls on the government of Brazil to recognize the malevolent intentions behind China’s Belt and Road Initiative, to no longer echo the false narrative pushed by China through the so-called “one China principle,” to refrain from maliciously disparaging Taiwan’s sovereignty, and to avoid becoming an accomplice in authoritarian China’s attempts to jeopardize regional peace and stability.
 
MOFA reaffirms the Taiwanese people’s staunch commitment to upholding the values of freedom and democracy and urges the international community to jointly condemn China’s unilateral actions aimed at disrupting cross-strait peace and stability.

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MOFA response to Australia, US, and Japan defense ministers emphasizing importance of cross-strait peace and stability

November 18, 2024  

Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Richard Marles, United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin III, and Japanese Minister of Defense Gen Nakatani met on November 17 in Darwin, Australia. In the joint statement issued after the meeting, the ministers emphasized the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, called for the peaceful resolution of cross-strait issues, expressed concern over developments in the South China Sea, and reiterated their strong opposition to any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion. 
 
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs sincerely thanks Australia, the United States, and Japan for continuing to publicly reaffirm their strong positions on jointly maintaining cross-strait peace and stability and upholding peace in the Indo-Pacific. Taiwan will continue to work with like-minded partners to defend the rules-based international order and advance regional peace, stability, and prosperity.

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MOFA response to US President Biden again underscoring importance of cross-strait peace and stability in meeting with Chinese leader Xi in Peru

November 17, 2024  

US President Joe Biden met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Lima, Peru, on November 16. During the meeting, President Biden reiterated that the United States opposed any unilateral changes to the status quo from either side of the Taiwan Strait, that it expected cross-strait differences to be resolved by peaceful means, and that the world had an interest in peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. He also called for an end to China’s destabilizing military activity around Taiwan. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) commends and welcomes President Biden publicly reaffirming the United States’ commitment to preserving peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait during interactions with the Chinese leader.
 
MOFA also thanks the Biden administration for placing great importance on, and doing its utmost through concrete actions to maintain, peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific. This included a joint statement issued after the recent US-Japan-ROK leaders’ meeting recognizing peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait as an indispensable element of security and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific. In the statement, the three countries announced the establishment of a trilateral secretariat to coordinate and implement their shared commitments and ensure that their joint efforts would make the Indo-Pacific a thriving, connected, resilient, stable, and secure region. 
 
MOFA also notes that China’s press release on the Biden-Xi meeting again included fallacious and misleading narratives on Taiwan and Taiwan-US relations. MOFA reiterates that neither the Republic of China (Taiwan) nor the People’s Republic of China is subordinate to the other. It also stresses that, as the United States and other parties have repeatedly pointed out, China’s continuous military provocations around Taiwan are the biggest destabilizing factor for regional peace and stability and the biggest threat to global economic prosperity. 
 
MOFA welcomes continued international attention on cross-strait peace and stability as well as concern over China’s threat to the peaceful status quo. As a responsible member of the global community, Taiwan will actively implement the Four Pillars of Peace action plan, leveraging its strengths to ensure peace. Taiwan is staunchly committed to defending itself and will steadily enhance its defense capabilities. It will also work with the United States and other like-minded partners to preserve peace, stability, and prosperity across the Taiwan Strait and in the Indo-Pacific.

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Taiwan donates €4 million to EBRD’s Ukraine Recovery and Reconstruction Guarantee Facility to help revitalize Ukrainian insurance market

Date：2024-12-14
Data Source：Department of European Affairs

December 14, 2024  
No. 461  

To assist Ukraine in revitalizing its domestic insurance market and to boost international investment interest in Ukraine, Taiwan has agreed to allocate €4 million from the TaiwanBusiness-EBRD Technical Cooperation Fund for the Ukraine Recovery and Reconstruction Guarantee Facility (URGF) initiative led by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). The donation agreement was signed in Taipei on December 2 at a ceremony witnessed by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Tien Chung-kwang. It was signed on behalf of Taiwan by Jonathan C. Y. Sun, Director General of the Department of International Organizations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and by Director for Donor Partnerships Camilla Otto on behalf of the EBRD. 
 
The EBRD held a ceremony to launch the URGF in its London headquarters on December 12, which was attended by Taiwan Representative to the United Kingdom Vincent C. H. Yao. In his remarks at the event, Representative Yao said that Taiwan staunchly supported Ukraine and looked forward to working with like-minded democratic allies to assist in Ukraine’s reconstruction through the URGF mechanism.
 
Due to the Russia-Ukraine war, international reinsurance companies have had reservations about providing coverage for businesses operating in Ukraine. The EBRD thus aims to raise €110 million via the URGF mechanism so as to provide additional guarantees for potential losses incurred by war-related risks. This will increase international investor confidence and, in turn, accelerate economic recovery and improve the lives of the Ukrainian people. France, the United Kingdom, Norway, the European Union, and Switzerland have also pledged to donate to the URGF. (E)

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Foreign Minister Lin hosts welcome luncheon for Polish parliamentary delegation led by Deputy Senate Marshal Kamiński

Date：2024-12-13
Data Source：Department of European Affairs

December 13, 2024  
No. 459  

Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung on December 12 hosted a luncheon to welcome a parliamentary delegation from the Republic of Poland led by Deputy Senate Marshal Michał Kamiński. During the event, the two sides exchanged views on regional developments, Taiwan-Poland relations, and economic and trade exchanges. 
 
Minister Lin pointed out that both Taiwan and Poland had previously gone through periods of authoritarian rule but had since chosen the path of democracy. He remarked that bilateral relations had steadily advanced in recent years in such areas as the economy, trade, higher education, law enforcement, and science and technology. Minister Lin also affirmed that Taiwan would continue to work with Poland and other like-minded countries to bolster democratic resilience, deepen Taiwan-Europe economic and trade linkages, and forge resilient democratic supply chains throughout the world. 
 
Furthermore, Minister Lin noted that the Polish-Taiwanese Parliamentarian Group released statements in April last year and May this year advocating Taiwan’s international participation and expressing concern over peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. He thanked friends from the Polish parliament for taking such concrete action in support of Taiwan and added that he looked forward to further collaborating in the future and deepening bilateral interactions and exchanges.
 
In his remarks, Deputy Senate Marshal Kamiński stated that Taiwan and Poland could learn from each other through exchanges in such fields as culture, the economy and trade, science and technology, and academia. He also said that due to Poland’s considerable economic development potential, many major Taiwanese enterprises had already invested in Poland, including Chi Mei Frozen Food and Compal, and that he anticipated that even more Taiwanese businesses would seek to develop market opportunities in Poland. 
 
Taiwan and Poland share such universal values as freedom and democracy. In the future, the two countries will continue to work closely together to jointly promote prosperity and progress and protect hard-earned democratic achievements. (E)

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Deputy Foreign Minister Wu to attend Somaliland presidential inauguration as special envoy of President Lai

Date：2024-12-11
Data Source：Department of West Asian and African Affairs

December 11, 2024  No. 458  

President-elect of the Republic of Somaliland Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi, who represents the Waddani National Party and previously served as speaker of the House of Representatives, will be sworn into office on December 12 following his election victory on November 13. Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs François Chihchung Wu, serving as special envoy of President Lai Ching-te, is leading a delegation to Somaliland to attend the inauguration ceremony and extend congratulations on behalf of the government and people of Taiwan. His visit underscores the friendly relations between the two democratic countries. 
 
Deputy Minister Wu arrived in the capital city of Hargeisa at noon on December 11. He was met at the airport by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Rhoda Jama Elmi on behalf of the Somaliland government. Representative of the Republic of Somaliland Representative Office in Taiwan Mohamed Omar Hagi Mohamoud and representative of the new government’s transition team Khadar Hussein Abdi were also there to welcome the delegation.
 
Deputy Minister Wu will attend the presidential inauguration and convey a message of congratulations from President Lai to President Abdullahi. He will also meet with outgoing President Muse Bihi Abdi and other prominent political figures, as well as representatives, envoys, and delegations from other nations, to exchange views on the latest international developments. 
 
Somaliland is an important partner of Taiwan in East Africa. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will continue to promote bilateral exchanges and cooperation across various domains and deepen the friendship between the two sides. (E)

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MOFA responds to China’s military activities around first island chain; urges international community to jointly safeguard cross-strait peace and stability

Date：2024-12-11
Data Source：Department of Policy Planning

December 11, 2024 
No. 457 

China has recently deployed large numbers of PLA Navy and China Coast Guard vessels around the first island chain for days-long military exercises. It has also repeatedly dispatched military aircraft and vessels to harass Taiwan, unilaterally disrupting peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, unnecessarily escalating regional tensions, and interfering with regular international shipping and trade. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) demands that the Beijing authorities immediately cease their military intimidation and all other unreasonable behavior that is jeopardizing regional peace and stability.
 
An international consensus has been reached on the importance of maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region. Although cross-strait and regional developments are closely followed by the international community, China continues to ramp up rhetorical and military intimidation against Taiwan. China’s large-scale military buildup around the first island chain has created uncertainty and risk, giving countries in the region cause for concern. This underscores the fact that China is a destabilizing force that is undermining peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific. 
                                
China’s provocative actions toward Taiwan and other countries in the region are a clear violation of the United Nations Charter, which stipulates that all countries must refrain from the threat or use of force to infringe on the territorial sovereignty of another country. MOFA solemnly demands that China immediately stop violating international law and demonstrate that it can be a responsible major power. 
 
Taiwan will do its utmost to fulfill its international responsibilities, calmly respond to China’s military threats, staunchly safeguard its sovereignty and national security, and firmly defend democracy and freedom. MOFA urges democratic partners worldwide to unite with Taiwan to jointly counter authoritarian expansionism and encroachment, prevent repeated attempts to unilaterally and deliberately disrupt the status quo, uphold the rules-based international order, and together preserve peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific. (E)