A group of European Parliament members led by European Parliament-Taiwan Friendship Group chairman Michael Gahler of Germany arrived in Taiwan yesterday to begin a six-day visit.
The delegation — which also includes European Parliament members Bernard Guetta of France and Ondrej Kolar of the Czech Republic, as well as the friendship group’s secretary-general, Markus Poesentrup of Germany — is the first group from the EU legislative body since European Parliament elections in June, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
During the visit, which ends on Friday, the delegates are to meet with Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴), join a banquet hosted by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) and visit the Legislative Yuan, the ministry said in a news release yesterday.
Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
The dignitaries would also meet with people from non-governmental organizations and major political parties to discuss issues such as Taiwan-EU economic ties and the geopolitical situation to explore opportunities for further cooperation, it said.
The visit comes after the European Parliament on Thursday adopted a resolution concerning the “misinterpretation of UN General Assembly Resolution 2758” by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and “its continuous military provocations around Taiwan,” the ministry said.
Expressing opposition to the PRC’s use of the 1971 resolution that replaced Taipei with Beijing at the UN to block Taiwan’s participation in international organizations affiliated with the global body, the European Parliament adopted the resolution with 432 votes in favor and 60 against.
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