Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) made history on Friday as the first Taiwanese vice president to deliver a speech in a European parliament while in office, addressing the annual summit of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) in Brussels.
Her presence and remarks at the European Parliament were highlighted by IPAC, a global alliance of lawmakers from various countries and political parties seeking to reform their governments’ China policies, in a social media post written in traditional and simplified Chinese, Japanese and Spanish. The post included three photos showing Hsiao speaking to IPAC members, accompanied by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍).
Hsiao underscored the importance of democratic solidarity amid rising authoritarian pressure, calling for democracies to stand together in defending shared values of openness, transparency and the rule of law.
Photo courtesy of the IPAC
“Democracies, even when far apart, are not alone. We are not alone in our values, not alone in our challenges, and, most importantly, we are not alone in our responsibility to act,” she said.
Hsiao highlighted Taiwan’s efforts to build what she called “whole-of-society resilience” — strengthening defenses through civic preparedness, cybersecurity and trusted economic partnerships — while asserting that Taiwan’s role as a thriving democracy and key player in global supply chains makes it indispensable to international stability and prosperity.
She said “peace in the Taiwan Strait is essential to global stability and economic continuity,” and warned that China’s attempts to alter the “status quo” violates the international consensus.
“Taiwan matters — not because we are a victim of coercion, but because the integrity of the international system and global prosperity depend on a strong and free Taiwan,” she said.
“We don’t just want to survive, we want democracies to thrive. We are not just defending what we have, but building what we want the future to look like, where free people and societies are more connected, more united and more capable,” Hsiao said.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Fan Yun (范雲), one of Taiwan’s IPAC cochairs, who was also present, wrote in a Facebook post that Hsiao had spoken to lawmakers from more than 50 countries to explain “why Taiwan matters.”
“Everyone gave a non-stop standing ovation after the speech and asked to take pictures with her. The special guest took the venue by storm,” Fan wrote.
The IPAC assembly marked the first time Taiwan participated as an official member. Taiwan gained membership last year during the alliance’s summit in Taipei, with Fan and Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Chen Gau-tzu (陳昭姿) serving as its cochairs.
Taiwan’s only formal diplomatic ties in Europe are with the Vatican, but countries from the UK and France to Lithuania and Poland have disregarded Beijing’s complaints to allow visits by acting or former senior Taiwan officials.
While Taiwanese foreign ministers sometimes visit Europe and other parts of the world without formal ties to Taipei, it is rare for a sitting vice president to do so, as some countries are wary of backlash from China.
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday departed for a visit to Berlin and is slated to address the Berlin Freedom Conference tomorrow.
In September, Lin traveled to Europe twice, visiting Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland and Italy.
Lin earlier this week said that he went to Europe to strengthen relations, and his ministry had set up a Europe task force.
China’s mission to the EU in a news release yesterday said that Hsiao’s visit “gravely violates the one-China principle, constitutes serious interference in China’s internal affairs, and severely undermines political mutual trust between China and the EU.”
Additional reporting by Reuters
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications yesterday inaugurated the Danjiang Bridge across the Tamsui River in New Taipei City, saying that the structure would be an architectural icon and traffic artery for Taiwan. Feted as a major engineering achievement, the Danjiang Bridge is 920m long, 211m tall at the top of its pylon, and is the longest single-pylon asymmetric cable-stayed bridge in the world, the government’s Web site for the structure said. It was designed by late Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid. The structure, with a maximum deck of 70m, accommodates road and light rail traffic, and affords a 200m navigation channel for boats,
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest foundry service provider, yesterday said that global semiconductor revenue is projected to hit US$1.5 trillion in 2030, after the figure exceeds US$1 trillion this year, as artificial intelligence (AI) demand boosts consumption of token and compute power. “We are still at the beginning of the AI revolution, but we already see a significant impact across the whole semiconductor ecosystem,” TSMC deputy cochief operating officer Kevin Zhang (張曉強) said at the company’s annual technology symposium in Hsinchu City. “It is fair to say that in the past decade, smartphones and other mobile devices were
US-CHINA SUMMIT: MOFA welcomed US reassurance of no change in its Taiwan policy; Trump said he did not comment when Xi talked of opposing independence US President Donald Trump yesterday said he has not made a decision on whether to move forward with a major arms package for Taiwan after hearing concerns about it from Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). Trump’s comments on Taiwan came as he flew back to Washington after wrapping up critical talks in which both leaders said important progress was made in stabilizing US-China relations even as deep differences persist between the world’s two biggest powers on Iran and Taiwan. “I will make a determination,” Trump said, adding: “I’ll be making decisions. But, you know, I think the last thing we need right
TAIWAN ISSUE: US treasury secretary Scott Bessent said on the first day of meetings that ‘it wouldn’t be a US-China summit without the Taiwan issue coming up’ There were no surprises on the first day of the summit between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday, as the government reiterated that cross-strait stability is crucial to the Asia-Pacific region, as well as the world. As the two presidents met for a highly anticipated summit yesterday, Chinese state media reported that Xi warned Trump that missteps regarding Taiwan could push their two countries into “conflict.” Trump arrived in China with accolades for his host, calling Xi a “great leader” and “friend,” and extending an invitation to visit the White House
RSS