The G7 should not shrink from making explicit plans to deter military action or other coercive measures Beijing might contemplate taking against Taiwan, the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) said in a statement on Monday.
The communique of the international consortium should “not shy away from the need for coordinated deterrence,” it said, adding that the group must make clear that “escalated aggression against Taiwan will cost Beijing dearly.”
Lawmakers from Australia, Canada, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Japan, the Netherlands, Ukraine and the UK were among the IPAC members who signed the statement.
Photo: AFP
The G7 should reassert its “firm opposition to any unilateral change” to the “status quo” across the Taiwan Strait, emphasize Taiwan’s importance to the global economy and deter Beijing from belligerent actions, it said.
The international body should acknowledge that instability in the South China Sea would have a significantly negative effect on the world economy and ensure that efforts to de-risk the global supply chain take the situation in the region into account, it said.
The G7 was additionally called upon to reduce overdependency on China, increase supply chain and energy resilience, improve labor standards, counter cybersecurity threats, cybertheft and disinformation, and oppose “transnational repression” emanating from China, the group said.
“G7 countries [should] coordinate their efforts to investigate and expose China’s transnational repression, including by sharing information, coordinating sanctions, and supporting civil society groups and human rights defenders who are working to document and counter these abuses,” it said.
The G7 was called upon to “work with other like-minded partners to pressure China to end its transnational repression by raising these issues in multilateral fora,” IPAC said.
Beijing’s “no limits” friendship with Moscow amid Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine cast doubt on China’s commitment to “the foundational principles of the international rules-based system,” it said.
Chinese entities and individuals should be monitored for providing aid to Russian aggression and sanctions invoked if necessary, it added.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Many Japanese couples are coming to Taiwan to obtain donated sperm or eggs for fertility treatment due to conservatism in their home country, Taiwan’s high standards and low costs, doctors said. One in every six couples in Japan is receiving infertility treatment, Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare data show. About 70,000 children are born in Japan every year through in vitro fertilization (IVF), or about one in every 11 children born. Few people accept donated reproductive cells in Japan due to a lack of clear regulations, leaving treatment in a “gray zone,” Taichung Nuwa Fertility Center medical director Wang Huai-ling (王懷麟)
PROXIMITY: Prague is closer to Dresden than Berlin is, so Taiwanese firms are expected to take advantage of the Czech capital’s location, the Executive Yuan official said Taiwan plans to boost cooperation with the Czech Republic in semiconductor development due to Prague’s pivotal role in the European IC industry, Executive Yuan Secretary-General Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said. With Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) building a wafer fab in the German city of Dresden, a Germany-Czech Republic-Poland “silicon triangle” is forming, Kung said in a media interview on the weekend after returning from a visit to Prague. “Prague is closer to Dresden than Berlin is, so Taiwanese firms are expected to take advantage of the Czech capital’s location,” he said. “Taiwan and Prague have already launched direct flights and it is