May 9, 2023
No. 149
The Right Honorable Elizabeth Truss, Member of the UK Parliament and former UK Prime Minister, will visit Taiwan from May 16 to May 20. She will meet with senior officials from the Office of the President and the Executive Yuan and heads of relevant government agencies, as well as visiting cultural and economic institutions. Former Prime Minister Truss has also been invited by the Prospect Foundation to deliver a speech on May 17. During her stay, she will engage with people from all sectors of society, including politics, business, and academia. This will strengthen the already close and friendly ties between Taiwan and the United Kingdom. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) of the Republic of China (Taiwan) sincerely welcomes her visit to Taiwan.
Former Prime Minister Truss has long been a staunch friend of Taiwan. During her tenure as UK secretary of state for foreign, commonwealth and development affairs, the UK government expressed the importance of maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait on numerous occasions, either individually or with other G7 countries, and affirmed that the United Kingdom has a clear interest in ensuring peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. And in her foreign policy speech in April last year, then Foreign Secretary Truss said for the first time that it was important to ensure that Taiwan and other democracies could defend themselves. She also stated during the NATO summit last June that Taiwan’s security is not only relevant to military security but also to economic security. She has repeatedly called on democratic nations to support Taiwan, elevating the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait from a regional issue to a global one.
Even after her tenure as prime minister, MP Truss has remained a vocal advocate for Taiwan, frequently calling on the free world to do its utmost to back Taiwan, ensure that Taiwan receives the support it needs to defend itself, and stand up for Taiwan’s democracy and freedom. MOFA thanks former Prime Minister Truss for her steadfast support of and deep friendship with Taiwan.
Since entering public service in 2010, former Prime Minister Truss has amassed extensive political experience. She has served in a number of important posts, including lord chancellor and secretary of state for justice; secretary of state for international trade and president of the board of trade; foreign secretary; and prime minister. This visit demonstrates her staunch support of Taiwan and the close friendship between Taiwan and the United Kingdom. (E)