March 27, 2024
No. 116
Minister of Foreign Affairs Jaushieh Joseph Wu hosted a dinner banquet on March 26 to welcome a delegation of European greens and express appreciation for the long-standing and staunch support extended to Taiwan by members of the European Parliament and the German Bundestag. The delegation was led by Reinhard Bütikofer, Chair of the EP’s Delegation for Relations with the People’s Republic of China and included EP Vice-President Heidi Hautala, Vice-Chair of the German Alliance 90/The Greens parliamentary group Agnieszka Brugger, Vice-Chair of the German-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Group Till Steffen, and Spokesperson for Human Rights and Humanitarian Aid for the German Alliance 90/The Greens parliamentary group Boris Mijatović. Vice President-elect Hsiao Bi-khim, who had just returned from a trip to Europe, also attended and engaged in exchanges with the delegation.
Minister Wu thanked the EP and the Bundestag for their strong support for Taiwan in recent years, including their expressions of concern over tensions across the Taiwan Strait and backing of Taiwan’s international participation. He urged the European Union and Germany to enhance substantive exchanges with Taiwan and advance bilateral relations.
Extending a warm welcome to the delegation, Vice President-elect Hsiao said that firsthand experience could lead to a better understanding of Taiwan and that the delegation’s visit underscored the fact that Taiwan and the European Union were like-minded partners that shared the values of democracy, freedom, the rule of law, and human rights. She expressed delight that supporting Taiwan had become a cross-party consensus within the EP and various national parliaments in recent years, adding that she looked forward to the continued deepening of Taiwan-EU cooperation and exchanges based on this solid foundation.
Head of the delegation Bütikofer thanked Minister Wu for his warm hospitality. He emphasized that supporting democratic Taiwan and cross-strait peace and stability was not only in line with EU values but also concerned global and European prosperity and interests. He said he was confident that the next EP would continue to uphold this friendship. Furthermore, Mr. Bütikofer expressed admiration for Taiwan’s safeguarding of democratic values and regional peace while located on the front line against authoritarian expansion and he hoped to work with Taiwan to further bolster the advancement of democracy.
EP Vice-President Hautala noted that support for democratic Taiwan had become a core issue for the EP. She cited recent EP resolutions on the EU Common Foreign and Security Policy and Common Security and Defence Policy as evidence of the high level of consensus and conviction in the EP on further deepening Taiwan-EU relations.
The two sides then held an in-depth exchange of views on regional political and economic issues, disinformation countermeasures, strengthening bilateral economic and trade cooperation, and other issues. They agreed to continue to enhance cooperation and exchanges between Taiwan and the EP and the Bundestag to further cement the values-based friendship. (E)