Taiwan’s future should be decided by Taiwanese, German-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Group chairman Till Steffen said yesterday, while giving former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) a tour of the German parliament building.
Tsai arrived in Berlin on Sunday and the following day delivered a keynote speech at the Berlin Freedom Conference titled “Threats facing democracies: Taiwan’s experience defending freedom.”
Tsai yesterday attended a tea gathering at the Bundestag, joined by former friendship group chairman of 15 years Klaus-Peter Willsch, German defense affairs specialist Roderich Kiesewetter and Federal Ministry of Education, Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth Parliamentary State Secretary Michael Brand.
Photo: Screen grab from Tsai’s Facebook page
Noting that the Reichstag, the building that houses the German parliament, is at the former border between East and West Germany, Steffen said he wanted to convey to Taiwan that “Germany’s unification was decided by the parliaments freely elected by both East and West Germany.”
“Similarly, Taiwan’s future should be decided by a parliament freely elected by the Taiwanese people. This is the democratic choice we support,” he added.
Tsai said that Taiwan and Germany have many opportunities to work together, citing Germany’s strong industrial capabilities and Taiwan’s own technological prowess.
Photo: Screen grab from Tsai’s Facebook page
The two countries can work together on many issues, and both sides should make efforts to achieve these goals, she added.
Later writing on Facebook about Der Bevolkerung in the Reichstag, Tsai said that each lawmaker adds in a bag of earth from their constituency to the art installation.
It symbolizes that the fate of the nation should be determined by the people who live in it, she said.
In an interview with the German-language daily Die Welt, Tsai reiterated that Taiwan is determined to increase is self-defense capabilities.
In an age in which artificial intelligence is quickly gaining prevalence, Taiwan is critical for the continued development of global technology and economy, she said, adding that in semiconductors, Taiwan is irreplaceable in the near future.
As long as democratic partners worldwide continue to support Taiwan, it would be able to go from “Taiwan can help” to “Taiwan is supporting,” Tsai said.
Prior to her visit, Tsai said that as a trustworthy member of the international community, Taiwan would continue to stand with Europe and other like-minded countries to demonstrate its commitment to freedom and democracy.
Additional reporting by CNA
The US government has signed defense cooperation agreements with Japan and the Philippines to boost the deterrence capabilities of countries in the first island chain, a report by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The main countries on the first island chain include the two nations and Taiwan. The bureau is to present the report at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee tomorrow. The US military has deployed Typhon missile systems to Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture and Zambales province in the Philippines during their joint military exercises. It has also installed NMESIS anti-ship systems in Japan’s Okinawa
‘WIN-WIN’: The Philippines, and central and eastern European countries are important potential drone cooperation partners, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung said Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) in an interview published yesterday confirmed that there are joint ventures between Taiwan and Poland in the drone industry. Lin made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper). The government-backed Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance and the Polish Chamber of Unmanned Systems on Wednesday last week signed a memorandum of understanding in Poland to develop a “non-China” supply chain for drones and work together on key technologies. Asked if Taiwan prioritized Poland among central and eastern European countries in drone collaboration, Lin
The Chien Feng IV (勁蜂, Mighty Hornet) loitering munition is on track to enter flight tests next month in connection with potential adoption by Taiwanese and US armed forces, a government source said yesterday. The kamikaze drone, which boasts a range of 1,000km, debuted at the Taipei Aerospace and Defense Technology Exhibition in September, the official said on condition of anonymity. The Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology and US-based Kratos Defense jointly developed the platform by leveraging the engine and airframe of the latter’s MQM-178 Firejet target drone, they said. The uncrewed aerial vehicle is designed to utilize an artificial intelligence computer
Renewed border fighting between Thailand and Cambodia showed no signs of abating yesterday, leaving hundreds of thousands of displaced people in both countries living in strained conditions as more flooded into temporary shelters. Reporters on the Thai side of the border heard sounds of outgoing, indirect fire yesterday. About 400,000 people have been evacuated from affected areas in Thailand and about 700 schools closed while fighting was ongoing in four border provinces, said Thai Rear Admiral Surasant Kongsiri, a spokesman for the military. Cambodia evacuated more than 127,000 villagers and closed hundreds of schools, the Thai Ministry of Defense said. Thailand’s military announced that
RSS