July 18, 2022
No. 172
Vice-President of the European Parliament Nicola Beer is visiting Taiwan from July 19 to 21 under a travel bubble arrangement for diplomats. This marks the first formal visit by a high-level European Parliament official and again demonstrates the EP’s staunch support for Taiwan. The trip follows the first-ever visit last November by an official delegation organized by the Special Committee on Foreign Interference in all Democratic Processes in the European Union, including Disinformation. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) of the Republic of China (Taiwan) extends a sincere welcome to EP Vice-President Beer.
Vice-President Beer will call on President Tsai Ing-wen, Premier Su Tseng-chang, Vice President of the Legislative Yuan Tsai Chi-chang, Minister without Portfolio Audrey Tang, and Minister of Mainland Affairs Chiu Tai-san. She will also attend a reception hosted by Minister of Foreign Affairs Jaushieh Joseph Wu. In addition, Vice-President Beer will engage in discussions with representatives of think tanks and civic groups focusing on defense, democracy, and human rights and visit cultural and economic sites. Arrangements for the arrival and departure of Vice-President Beer and her delegation and their activities in Taiwan will be in compliance with the antipandemic regulations of the Central Epidemic Command Center.
Vice-President Beer has long extended support for freedom and democracy in Taiwan, strongly endorsing resolutions on Taiwan and signing joint letters backing Taiwan’s participation in the World Health Assembly and related international organizations. She has expressed a high level of concern for security across the Taiwan Strait in written and oral interpellations. In December 2020, she held a joint online press conference with Taiwan, publicly urging the European Union and its member countries to elevate Taiwan-EU relations through concrete action. Vice-President Beer is an important friend of Taiwan.
This is EP Vice-President Beer’s first visit to Taiwan. During her stay, she will seek to gain deeper insights into Taiwan’s democratic development, focus attention on peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, and explore potential Taiwan-EU cooperation on high-tech supply chain resilience. Her visit will bolster substantive partnerships between Taiwan and the European Union in various domains and, on the basis of the shared values of democracy and freedom, will underscore the determination of both sides to jointly safeguard the rules-based international order and ensure regional peace and stability. (E)