The annual Munich Security Conference on international security and policy took place again last month. Issues related to information and communications security, as well as Internet regulations and policies, have become increasingly important at the conference.
European countries have not only attached great importance to such issues over the past few years, they have also used legislation and policy to find a different approach from the US and China.
At the UN Internet Governance Forum in Paris in November last year, French President Emmanuel Macron stressed that, in contrast with the abuse of personal data in the California-style Internet and the Chinese-style Internet based on totalitarian surveillance and control, the world needs to improve Internet regulations and build a third kind of cyberspace that is safe and trustworthy.
Macron proposed that the international community make rules to ensure a free, open and safe Internet.
The EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) that came into effect in May last year is a good indicator, as it has strengthened personal data protection in cyberspace and given ownership of data back to users. After the EU set the tone, even the US has started to discuss whether a privacy protection bill similar to the GDPR is needed.
In 2016, the EU, led by Germany and France, also proposed a controversial draft directive on copyright in the digital single market. Article 11 of the directive requires that Web sites showing link results on their pages pay a “license fee” — also called a “link tax” — to the content providers, and Article 13 requires operators to try their best to prevent content infringements.
Although these seemingly extreme rules might not be passed by the European Parliament, they are a reflection of the EU’s review of Internet development and its ambition to break the rules of the Internet industry, which have long been dominated by the US.
The EU’s attempt to keep its distance from US technology policy is nothing new and it has adopted a set of new strategies connecting it with Asia. It is also paying more attention to and expressing greater friendliness toward Taiwan.
For example, the European Commission released Connecting Europe and Asia: Building blocks for an EU strategy in September last year.
Among several issues, Federica Mogherini, high representative of the EU for foreign affairs and security policy, called on Asian states to deepen cooperation with the EU on digital and energy issues crucial to the development of technology.
In an op-ed piece titled “Connecting Asia-Pacific and Europe” published in the Taipei Times on Oct. 16 last year, Mogherini said: “In the area of collaborative business and innovation, leading Taiwanese chip companies, for instance, participate in Galileo — the global satellite navigation system operated by the EU.”
European wind power companies, Taiwanese and European operators, officials and academics were invited to a public hearing on Taiwan-Europe trade relations held by the European Parliament’s Committee on International Trade.
The hearing has created hope in Taiwan that by linking up the digital and energy high-tech sectors, it might become possible to achieve the difficult task of signing a bilateral trade agreement.
It is clear that as the US and China vie for dominance of the high-tech sector, there is a clear opportunity for Taiwan and Europe to deepen cooperation in the digital and energy sectors.
Chiang Ya-chi is an associate professor at National Taipei University of Technology’s Graduate Institute of Intellectual Property.
Translated by Eddy Chang
Recently, China launched another diplomatic offensive against Taiwan, improperly linking its “one China principle” with UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 to constrain Taiwan’s diplomatic space. After Taiwan’s presidential election on Jan. 13, China persuaded Nauru to sever diplomatic ties with Taiwan. Nauru cited Resolution 2758 in its declaration of the diplomatic break. Subsequently, during the WHO Executive Board meeting that month, Beijing rallied countries including Venezuela, Zimbabwe, Belarus, Egypt, Nicaragua, Sri Lanka, Laos, Russia, Syria and Pakistan to reiterate the “one China principle” in their statements, and assert that “Resolution 2758 has settled the status of Taiwan” to hinder Taiwan’s
Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s (李顯龍) decision to step down after 19 years and hand power to his deputy, Lawrence Wong (黃循財), on May 15 was expected — though, perhaps, not so soon. Most political analysts had been eyeing an end-of-year handover, to ensure more time for Wong to study and shadow the role, ahead of general elections that must be called by November next year. Wong — who is currently both deputy prime minister and minister of finance — would need a combination of fresh ideas, wisdom and experience as he writes the nation’s next chapter. The world that
Can US dialogue and cooperation with the communist dictatorship in Beijing help avert a Taiwan Strait crisis? Or is US President Joe Biden playing into Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) hands? With America preoccupied with the wars in Europe and the Middle East, Biden is seeking better relations with Xi’s regime. The goal is to responsibly manage US-China competition and prevent unintended conflict, thereby hoping to create greater space for the two countries to work together in areas where their interests align. The existing wars have already stretched US military resources thin, and the last thing Biden wants is yet another war.
Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, people have been asking if Taiwan is the next Ukraine. At a G7 meeting of national leaders in January, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida warned that Taiwan “could be the next Ukraine” if Chinese aggression is not checked. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has said that if Russia is not defeated, then “today, it’s Ukraine, tomorrow it can be Taiwan.” China does not like this rhetoric. Its diplomats ask people to stop saying “Ukraine today, Taiwan tomorrow.” However, the rhetoric and stated ambition of Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) on Taiwan shows strong parallels with