European Parliament Vice President Nicola Beer says now is the time to stand by Taiwan. Beer is in Taiwan for a three day official visit starting Tuesday. This is Beer’s first trip to Taiwan in her official capacity as vice president of the parliament.
Beer says Taiwan is a model of democracy in the Chinese speaking community. She says it is time to stand by Taiwan and that Europe and Taiwan are both members of the family of democracies.
Beer says the achievement of freedom and democracy in Taiwan is also the achievement of Europe. She states Europe will not ignore the pressure China exerts on Taiwan and that Europe will lend a helping hand to Taiwan when in need. She says Europe will not let Taiwan be like Hong Kong, referring to China’s repression of the 2019 pro-democracy protests there. Beer says there is currently a war in Europe and that she hopes to avoid one in Asia, specifically a Chinese invasion of Taiwan.
Meanwhile, Presidential Office spokesperson Xavier Chang says President Tsai Ing-wen will meet with Beer and her delegation on Wednesday. Chang says the visit follows another trip by the European Parliament’s committee on foreign interference in November last year.
Chang also says the Presidential Office hopes that relations between Taiwan and Europe will develop steadily through exchange. He says Taiwan is willing to continue to work with the EU to strengthen the resilience of global democracy and advance economic recovery in the post-COVID pandemic era.
Premier Su Tseng-chang met with Beer Tuesday afternoon. Su expressed his gratitude for the European Parliament recently passing a number of bills in support of Taiwan.