Johan Pehrson, Chairman of the parliament justice committee, and Axel Darvik, Mia Franzen, Karin Granbom, Anna Gronlund-Krantz, Tobias Gronlund-Krantz, Torkild Strandberg, Cecilia Wigstrom, members of parliament
Swedish Liberal Party
As Liberal Party parliamentarians from Sweden visiting Taiwan, we are learning that there are worries here that some European political leaders are more interested in selling weapons to China than in supporting democracy in Taiwan. We would like to assure the Taiwanese people that there are European politicians sympathetic to their situation and vehemently opposed to any loosening up of the EU embargo banning weapons exports to China.
It is no secret that the French government, one of the most influential in the EU, has not only been pushing to abolish the arms embargo, but has held joint fleet exercises with the Chinese in the Pacific. We recognize that it is in every nation's interest to enjoy good relations with China, but the attitude taken by the French government on this issue exposes a lack of understanding of the perils and threats posed by a huge authoritarian state armed with modern weapons. These weapons can and will be used to threaten, pacify and oppress the Chinese and Taiwanese people. The misjudgement by some European politicians of the dangers of emboldening Chinese expansionism must be resisted.
Therefore, our party regularly brings up the Taiwan issue for debate and pressures the Swedish government to protest Chinese hardline policies. Additionally, liberals in the European parliament constantly oppose the policies, from either left or right, to unnecessarily bow to Chinese pressure.
The Swedish parliament has a Taiwan friendship association numbering 20 percent of all legislators, with members from the government coalition, including the long-ruling social democrats. Members of the association take notice of and bring into the public arena any Swedish government action which is excessively accommodating to China's expansionism or fails to constructively push to expand Taiwan's international space and participation.
It is a historical fact that democracies have never waged war against other democracies. We believe that a democratization of China will definitely secure peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. Democracies thus need to pursue a responsible policy of a good, stable and growing political and economic relationship with China to facilitate that nation's transition to democracy.
Taiwan's success is a natural model for the rest of Asia to emulate in both politics and economics. Taiwan has our admiration for its stubborn perseverance in liberty and democracy and we will continue to push for Taiwan's legitimate interests internationally whenever we can.
Could Asia be on the verge of a new wave of nuclear proliferation? A look back at the early history of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which recently celebrated its 75th anniversary, illuminates some reasons for concern in the Indo-Pacific today. US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin recently described NATO as “the most powerful and successful alliance in history,” but the organization’s early years were not without challenges. At its inception, the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty marked a sea change in American strategic thinking. The United States had been intent on withdrawing from Europe in the years following
My wife and I spent the week in the interior of Taiwan where Shuyuan spent her childhood. In that town there is a street that functions as an open farmer’s market. Walk along that street, as Shuyuan did yesterday, and it is next to impossible to come home empty-handed. Some mangoes that looked vaguely like others we had seen around here ended up on our table. Shuyuan told how she had bought them from a little old farmer woman from the countryside who said the mangoes were from a very old tree she had on her property. The big surprise
The issue of China’s overcapacity has drawn greater global attention recently, with US Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen urging Beijing to address its excess production in key industries during her visit to China last week. Meanwhile in Brussels, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen last week said that Europe must have a tough talk with China on its perceived overcapacity and unfair trade practices. The remarks by Yellen and Von der Leyen come as China’s economy is undergoing a painful transition. Beijing is trying to steer the world’s second-largest economy out of a COVID-19 slump, the property crisis and
As former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) wrapped up his visit to the People’s Republic of China, he received his share of attention. Certainly, the trip must be seen within the full context of Ma’s life, that is, his eight-year presidency, the Sunflower movement and his failed Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement, as well as his eight years as Taipei mayor with its posturing, accusations of money laundering, and ups and downs. Through all that, basic questions stand out: “What drives Ma? What is his end game?” Having observed and commented on Ma for decades, it is all ironically reminiscent of former US president Harry