The staunch support for peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait expressed by senior members of the European Parliament is sincerely appreciated, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Sept. 23.
 
At a Sept. 21 meeting of the EP’s Committee on Foreign Affairs, several MEPs voiced grave concern over escalating cross-strait tensions after repeated incursions by Chinese warplanes into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone in recent weeks.
 
Among these, MEP Michael Gahler from Germany, who also doubles as chair of the EP’s Taiwan Friendship Group, said any changes or developments pertaining to cross-strait relations must be conducted on the premise of peace. Beijing’s assertive actions are inappropriate and put at risk the EU’s continued support for the “one China” policy, he added.
 
Fellow German MEP Reinhard Butikofer said the future direction of the cross-strait relationship must be decided in a peaceful manner that does not run against the will of the Taiwan people, while MEP Marketa Gregorova of the Czech Republic defended the recent visit by members of her country’s senate to Taiwan.
 
Gunnar Wiegand, managing director for Asia and the Pacific at the European External Action Service, said EU-Taiwan ties continue to go from strength to strength as cooperation and exchanges expand across the board, adding that democratic and free Taiwan is the EU’s 15th largest trading partner.
 
Regarding China’s attempts at military coercion, the MOFA said peaceful development of the cross-strait relationship is in the interest of all. The recent claim by Beijing that the median line of the Taiwan Strait does not exist is an act of provocation that attempts to unilaterally change the status quo, it added.
 
The MOFA called on Beijing to exercise self-restraint, refrain from taking unilateral actions and resolve disputes through cross-strait dialogue. The government will continue to work with the European Union and other like-minded partners to promote prosperity and stability in the Taiwan Strait, it added. (SFC-E)
 
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