The European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs is to discuss a draft report on adding “Taipei” to the name of the EU’s representative office in Taipei, a source said.
European Parliament Member Charlie Weimers was “appointed as RAPPORTEUR on the first ever #EU-#Taiwan relations report,” the European Conservatives and Reformists political group wrote on Twitter on April 23.
In the draft report, Weimers referred to Taiwan as a “like-minded partner” of the EU, which “shares similar values of freedom, democracy, human rights and rule of law.”
Weimers called China a “serious threat” to peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region, and called on the EU to take action.
The draft report called on EU member countries to enhance official exchanges with Taiwan, including interactions at the highest levels of government.
In June, several European Parliament members said the committee on Wednesday might discuss a proposal to change the name of the European Economic and Trade Office to the “European Union Office in Taipei,” the source said.
In the draft report, the members proposed that before the end of the year the European Commission would conduct an impact assessment on establishing a bilateral investment agreement with Taiwan, and called for the EU to engage in discussions with the international community about cooperating on the protection of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.
Taiwan should be included as a key partner in the EU’s strategy for the Indo-Pacific region, and the EU should call for Taiwan’s meaningful participation in international organizations including the WHO, the International Civil Aviation Organization and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, the report said.
National Taiwan University political science professor Chen Shih-min (陳世民) on Saturday said that Taiwanese should view the proposals with cautious optimism, since the European Parliament has no control over the EU budget, and it normally adopts legislation on the proposal of the European Commission.
As the members of the European Parliament are democratically elected, they could put some pressure on the heads of member states in terms of their political policy, he said.
The government should pursue closer ties with EU countries on the basis of the proposals, he added.
Additional reporting by Wu Su-wei
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday lavished US President Donald Trump with praise and vows of a “golden age” of ties on his visit to Tokyo, before inking a deal with Washington aimed at securing critical minerals. Takaichi — Japan’s first female prime minister — pulled out all the stops for Trump in her opening test on the international stage and even announced that she would nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize, the White House said. Trump has become increasingly focused on the Nobel since his return to power in January and claims to have ended several conflicts around the world,
REASSURANCE: The US said Taiwan’s interests would not be harmed during the talk and that it remains steadfast in its support for the nation, the foreign minister said US President Donald Trump on Friday said he would bring up Taiwan with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) during a meeting on the sidelines of the APEC Summit in South Korea this week. “I will be talking about Taiwan [with Xi],” Trump told reporters before he departed for his trip to Asia, adding that he had “a lot of respect for Taiwan.” “We have a lot to talk about with President Xi, and he has a lot to talk about with us. I think we’ll have a good meeting,” Trump said. Taiwan has long been a contentious issue between the US and China.
GLOBAL PROJECT: Underseas cables ‘are the nervous system of democratic connectivity,’ which is under stress, Member of the European Parliament Rihards Kols said The government yesterday launched an initiative to promote global cooperation on improved security of undersea cables, following reported disruptions of such cables near Taiwan and around the world. The Management Initiative on International Undersea Cables aims to “bring together stakeholders, align standards, promote best practices and turn shared concerns into beneficial cooperation,” Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said at a seminar in Taipei. The project would be known as “RISK,” an acronym for risk mitigation, information sharing, systemic reform and knowledge building, he said at the seminar, titled “Taiwan-Europe Subsea Cable Security Cooperation Forum.” Taiwan sits at a vital junction on
RSS