Member of the European Parliament Charlie Weimers on Thursday called on the EU to invite Taiwanese leaders to visit Europe as part of its efforts to forge closer ties between the two sides.
Weimers, the rapporteur of a draft report titled “EU-Taiwan Relations and Cooperation,” said that relations on “political levels” should be promoted in response to China ramping up military threats against Taiwan.
After the European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee approved the draft report on Wednesday, Weimers, who is from Sweden, said that the first-ever passage of such a report in the committee was a historic event, signaling that the EU is ready to deepen relations with Taiwan.
Photo: CNA
“I think the European Union should invite Taiwanese leaders to Europe,” Weimers said in an interview with the Central News Agency.
He supports high-level official exchanges between the EU and Taiwan, Weimers said, urging the parliament to push for political exchanges between the two sides.
The draft report was overwhelmingly approved with 60 votes in favor, four votes against and six abstentions.
The draft would now be submitted to a vote in the parliament next month.
The report called for closer relations and a stronger partnership between the two sides “guided by the EU’s one China policy.”
To step up cooperation, the report stressed the need to begin an “impact assessment, public consultation and scoping exercise” on an “EU-Taiwan Bilateral Investment Agreement.”
Weimers said that he in May received an e-mail from the Chinese embassy in Sweden, criticizing the draft report.
The e-mail repeated Beijing’s viewpoint that the involvement of Taiwan would touch upon China’s internal affairs.
“Legislators throughout Europe as well as countries are under increased pressure from China,” Weimers said. “We must learn from that. We must make value change much more independent from Chinese influences.”
The draft report also called on the bloc to change the name of the European Economic and Trade Office in Taiwan to “European Union Office in Taiwan” to reflect the broad scope of bilateral ties.
“I strongly support the name change,” Weimers said.
The report not only reflects that the EU has developed close economic and trade ties with Taiwan, but that both sides have “very much in common in terms of values, in terms of how we take on the big challenges over times,” he said, citing as examples energy development and academic exchanges.
“The name change of the office in Taiwan would reflect such a broadening of the scope of relationships between the Europe and Taiwan,” Weimers said.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College