The UK plans to conduct more freedom of navigation operations in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs David Lammy told the British House of Commons on Tuesday.
British Member of Parliament Desmond Swayne said that the Royal Navy’s HMS Spey had passed through the Taiwan Strait “in pursuit of vital international freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.”
Swayne asked Lammy whether he agreed that it was “proper and lawful” to do so, and if the UK would continue to carry out similar operations.
Photo courtesy of the British Royal Navy via CNA
Lammy replied “yes” to both questions.
The Spey, a River-class offshore patrol vessel, on Wednesday last week sailed through the Taiwan Strait after participating in joint exercises in the East China Sea with Australia, Japan, South Korea and the US, the Royal Navy said at the time.
On Monday, the Spey and Australia’s HMAS Sydney carried out a freedom of navigation operation in waters surrounding the Taiwan-claimed Spratly Islands (Nansha Islands, 南沙群島) in the South China Sea.
In September 2021, the Spey and the HMS Tamar, another River-class vessel, departed from the UK to begin deployments in the Indo-Pacific region that would last at least five years, Royal Navy reports said.
Before Wednesday last week, the Spey was confirmed to have traveled through the Taiwan Strait at least once during its Indo-Pacific deployment, including a transit in the first half of last year.
The Royal Navy’s most advanced aircraft carrier, the HMS Prince of Wales, departed England in late April to begin an operational deployment to the Indo-Pacific region.
Meanwhile, in Lammy’s statement to the House of Commons on the British government’s approach to China following the cross-Whitehall audit, he said that “our approach to China must stay rooted both in international law and deterrence... And we will continue to work with our regional partners to support freedom of navigation and call out China’s abuses.”
“We will not change our long-standing position on Taiwan, while sustaining unofficial, but vibrant ties with Taiwan on trade, on education and innovation. We will also never shy away from shining a spotlight on human rights, notably the situations in Xinjiang and Tibet,” he said.
In related news, the UK in a national security policy paper published on Tuesday highlighted the importance of regional stability in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait.
“The centrality of the South China Sea and Taiwan Strait to global trade and supply chains underscores the importance to the UK of regional stability,” the paper said.
Titled “National Security Strategy 2025: Security for the British People in a Dangerous World,” the paper said that “there is a particular risk of escalation around Taiwan.”
“It is the UK’s position that the Taiwan issue should be resolved peacefully by the people on both sides of the strait through constructive dialogue, without the threat or use of force or coercion,” it said.
“We do not support any unilateral attempts to change the status quo,” it added.
The UK would continue to reinforce ties with Taiwan “in a wide range of areas” as a part of a “strong unofficial relationship” founded on shared democratic values, it said.
Taiwan was mentioned four times in the 50-page national security paper, all within one section.
The UK’s position on Taiwan has not fundamentally changed over the past five years, but the paper shows that it is increasingly concerned over rising tensions in the Taiwan Strait.
British Secretary of State for Defence John Healey on April 22 told a parliamentary session that peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region are not only crucial for countries within the region, but also for the UK.
Any “discussion on the future of Taiwan is necessarily one to be conducted by peaceful negotiation rather than by threats and conflict,” Healey said.
The UK hopes China would recognize that London is deeply concerned about security, peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region, he said.
The security of the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific regions are indivisible — a principle shared by NATO and other allies, the policy paper said.
The likelihood of a conflict in the Indo-Pacific region is increasing and China’s actions continue to threaten international security, it said.
In Taipei, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday said that it welcome’s Lammy’s remark about the UK not changing its position on Taiwan, and sustaining ties with the nation.
The UK’s National Security Strategy stresses the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, highlighting that it is a consensus of the international community, the ministry said, adding that Taiwan plays an indispensable role in global and regional security and prosperity.
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
One of two tropical depressions that formed off Taiwan yesterday morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. The weather system is expected to move northwest as it builds momentum, possibly intensifying this weekend into a typhoon, which would be called Mitag, Lee said. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is forecast to approach the southeast of Taiwan on Monday next week and pass through the Bashi Channel
NO CHANGE: The TRA makes clear that the US does not consider the status of Taiwan to have been determined by WWII-era documents, a former AIT deputy director said The American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) comments that World War-II era documents do not determine Taiwan’s political status accurately conveyed the US’ stance, the US Department of State said. An AIT spokesperson on Saturday said that a Chinese official mischaracterized World War II-era documents as stating that Taiwan was ceded to the China. The remarks from the US’ de facto embassy in Taiwan drew criticism from the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, whose director said the comments put Taiwan in danger. The Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday reported that a US State Department spokesperson confirmed the AIT’s position. They added that the US would continue to
The number of Chinese spouses applying for dependent residency as well as long-term residency in Taiwan has decreased, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday, adding that the reduction of Chinese spouses staying or living in Taiwan is only one facet reflecting the general decrease in the number of people willing to get married in Taiwan. The number of Chinese spouses applying for dependent residency last year was 7,123, down by 2,931, or 29.15 percent, from the previous year. The same census showed that the number of Chinese spouses applying for long-term residency and receiving approval last year stood at 2,973, down 1,520,
RSS