Peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait is vital for the growth of the global economy, the leader of a delegation of Members of the European Parliament said yesterday, while calling Taiwan a trusted partner for enhanced cooperation with European countries in areas such as semiconductors.
With the many new friends Taipei has made in Europe, thanks to President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) efforts in the past few years, Taiwan would receive mutual support and assistance as a member of “Team Democracy,” delegation leader and German member of the European Parliament Reinhard Butikofer told a news conference at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Taipei.
Asked if Europe should abandon its long-held reluctance to provide Taiwan with arms amid escalating cross-strait tensions, Butikofer, chairman of the European Parliament Delegation for Relations with the People’s Republic of China, likened European democracies to “turtles.”
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
“They don’t move very fast. They don’t change the direction suddenly, but once they get moving, they’re not easily stopped,” he said.
With the Russian invasion of Ukraine, “Europe has changed. My own country has changed” its policies on arms exports, he added.
However, Butikofer also said that he is not sure what Taiwan needs defensively, although he has heard a lot of discussions of asymmetrical warfare during his Taiwan visit, and is not sure if the fighters and tanks Germany produces would be “exactly what Taiwan needs” for its defense.
Other delegation members include European Parliament Vice President Heidi Hautala, German Bundestag members Agnieszka Brugger and Boris Mijatovic, as well as German-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Group deputy chair Till Steffen, all of whom are members of green parties in their nations.
On Tuesday, during a visit to the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) headquarters, Butikofer said the world has underestimated the threat posed by China and Russia.
If Russia’s effect on the world is like a typhoon, then China’s would be like climate change, he said.
Supporting Taiwan’s democracy, and preserving regional peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait are the values of the EU, and the delegation looks forward to collaborating with Taiwan in many fields, not just in semiconductors and technology, he said, calling Taiwan a trusted friend and trading partner of Europe.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮), speaking at a dinner for the delegation on Tuesday night, thanked the European Parliament and the German Bundestag for showing support for Taiwan and its participation in international organizations amid rising tensions in the Strait in the past few years.
Wu called for more collaboration with Germany and European countries to promote further interactions and enhance relations.
Vice president-elect Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴), also speaking at the reception, said that the delegation’s visit would help EU lawmakers better understand that Taiwan has similar values to European nations, particularly in regards to democracy, freedom, the rule of law and human rights.
That has been the basis for the European Parliament and many countries supporting Taiwan, Hsiao said.
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