– Taiwan will continue to cooperate with G7 nations and like-minded countries
– Taiwan’s bid to participate in INTERPOL
– Taiwan and Germany signs arrangement on dialogue platform to promote civil society exchanges
By Caribbean News Global
TAIPEI, Taiwan – The leaders of the G7 held a virtual meeting and issued a joint statement on December 6, 2023, reaffirming the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait as indispensable to security and prosperity in the international community. The G7 called for a peaceful resolution of cross-strait issues, and strongly opposed any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China (Taiwan) welcomes and appreciates the fact that the G7 nations continue to pay high regard to peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait,” said MOFA in a press statement. “In recent years, China has expanded military activities in the Taiwan Strait and South China Sea, posing a serious threat to Indo-Pacific and global security and raising grave concerns among the international community.”
Throughout 2023, major nations have used such meetings as the US-Japan summit, the G7 Hiroshima Summit, the US-Japan-ROK summit, and the Japan-France summit to issue joint communiqués or statements that emphasize the importance of safeguarding peace and security across the Taiwan Strait and demonstrate that the preservation of Taiwan Strait security is the consensus among the international community.
“As an important nation in the Indo-Pacific region, Taiwan will continue to cooperate with G7 nations and like-minded countries to strengthen the resilience of the global democratic camp, protect the rules-based international order, and jointly resist the coercion and challenges posed by authoritarianism,” MOFA affirmed.
Taiwan’s bid to participate in INTERPOL
The 91st General Assembly of the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) was held in Vienna, Austria, from November 28 to December 1. Although Taiwan was not invited to attend, international support for its participation increased significantly this year. Calls for Taiwan’s inclusion came from the executive and legislative branches of government, interparliamentary organizations, and prominent individuals from over 60 countries. This demonstrates that more and more nations recognize the need to include Taiwan in the global system to combat transnational crime.
This year, Taiwan’s diplomatic allies wrote letters, made statements, issued press releases, produced videos, and took various other actions to endorse Taiwan’s campaign. Eswatini, Palau, Saint Christopher and Nevis, Paraguay, Belize, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and the Marshall Islands spoke up for Taiwan at the INTERPOL General Assembly, drawing the attention of participating countries and effectively raising the visibility of Taiwan’s bid.
Support from national parliaments and interparliamentary organizations was fairly strong too. In the United States, senators from both sides of the aisle introduced the Taiwan Relations Reinforcement Act; Congress leaders issued a statement backing Taiwan; and the Senate or Houses of Representatives of 32 state legislatures passed resolutions in support of Taiwan.
The Czech Senate, the Polish-Taiwanese Parliamentary Group, the Public Security Committee of the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies, the Guatemala-Taiwan parliamentary friendship association, and the National Assembly of Saint Christopher and Nevis also voted through resolutions supporting Taiwan. In September, the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China adopted the Prague Communiqué, in which it once again endorsed Taiwan’s meaningful participation in INTERPOL and other international organizations. Parliamentarians from Brazil, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Estonia, Spain, Mexico, Chile, the Republic of Korea (ROK), the Philippines, Colombia, South Africa, and other countries also expressed support for Taiwan through individual or joint letters.
A video produced by the CIB for this year’s INTERPOL campaign called The Bracelet was posted on the Facebook and X accounts of MOFA and Taiwan’s overseas missions, the Trending Taiwan YouTube channel, and other avenues, accumulating more than 870,000 views and shared by the Australian Office in Taiwan.
Furthermore, a video advertisement titled A Safer World, Taiwan Can Help was played on large electronic billboards at Vienna Airport and outside the INTERPOL General Assembly venue, effectively raising awareness and support for Taiwan’s bid among national representatives.
MOFA underlines that global cooperation is needed to ensure that there are no gaps or loopholes in the fight against transnational crime. As a specialist organization that promotes cooperation between law enforcement agencies around the world, INTERPOL should not exclude any stakeholders based on political considerations. MOFA urges INTERPOL to uphold the principles of professionalism and neutrality and to swiftly include Taiwan in the global law enforcement network to create a safer world.
Like-minded countries have also actively called for Taiwan’s participation in INTERPOL and other international organizations.
Declarations of support were included in a communiqué and joint statement issued by the G7 foreign ministers and the EU high representative for foreign affairs and security policy; joint statements issued after foreign and defense ministerial consultations and meetings between France and Australia, the United Kingdom and Australia, the United States and Australia, and the United Kingdom and Japan; a joint statement from the US secretary of state and the Lithuanian foreign minister; and the recently announced 2023-2027 Roadmap on Japan-France Cooperation. Foreign minister Hanke Bruins Slot of the Netherlands also backed Taiwan’s international participation in response to a question in parliament.
MOFA sincerely appreciates the staunch support that Taiwan has received from the international community.
Meanwhile, Shieh Jhy-wey, representative of the Taipei representative office in Germany, and Andreas Hofem, deputy director general of the German Institute Taipei, signed an arrangement via videoconference on December 5 to establish a Taiwan-Germany dialogue platform for civil society exchanges. The arrangement will serve as a foundation for stronger civil society dialogue and exchanges between the two countries.
The dialogue platform was initiated by the Federal Foreign Office of Germany to promote civil society exchanges and build mutual understanding between the peoples of both countries.
The platform will meet once a year, alternately in Taiwan and Germany. Meetings will be cochaired by Ku Chung-hwa, board member of the Taiwan Association of Third Sector Research and former professor of the Department of Sociology at National Chengchi University, and Reinhard Bütikofer, member of the European Parliament
Taiwan-Germany relations have continued to strengthen in recent years. The two countries enjoy frequent exchanges and interactions across a range of spheres. The establishment of the civil society dialogue platform marks the third accord signed between Taiwan and Germany this year, following ones on scientific and technological cooperation and mutual legal assistance in criminal matters.
Building on the solid foundations of the Taiwan-Germany relationship, MOFA will continue to expand substantive cooperation between the two countries at all levels. MOFA welcomes this positive development in bilateral relations.
