The European Parliament’s first delegation to Taiwan arrived yesterday in the nation for discussions on fighting disinformation, with delegation members scheduled to meet President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) today.
The 13-person delegation is visiting Taiwan on a three-day trip, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
The delegation includes seven members of the “Special Committee on Foreign Interference in all Democratic Processes in the European Union, including Disinformation”: committee president Raphael Glucksmann of France, Andrius Kubilius and Petras Austrevicius of Lithuania, Marketa Gregorova of the Czech Republic, Andreas Schieder of Austria, Georgios Kyrtsos of Greece and Marco Dreosto of Italy, the ministry said.
Photo: Lee Hsin-fang, Taipei Times
“The delegation will discuss Taiwanese experiences in [the] fight against disinformation; attempts at interference in Taiwanese democracy, media, culture and education; as well as Taiwan’s efforts to reinforce its cyberresilience,” the European Parliament said in a news release.
“Taiwan uses innovative tools and involves the whole Taiwanese society to address all types of interference in its democracy, without restricting freedom of speech and media,” it said.
It is the first time the European Parliament has sent an official delegation to Taiwan, which is significant, Presidential Office spokesman Xavier Chang (張惇涵) said in a statement, adding that Tsai would meet with them at the Presidential Office this morning.
This year, the European Parliament has passed 12 resolutions friendly to Taiwan, showing that Taiwan-EU relations are becoming ever closer, Chang said.
Yesterday, the delegation met with Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌), the ministry said, adding that Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Harry Tseng (曾厚仁) was to host a banquet for them on behalf of Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮).
The delegation would attend a news conference at a hotel in Taipei tomorrow, the ministry added.
European Union Centre in Taiwan executive director Marc Cheng (鄭家慶) told the Taipei Times by telephone that while other European lawmakers have visited, this group got more attention due to the timing and nature of the visit.
The special committee was just created last year, and its members are visiting Taiwan at a time when Taiwan-US-China relations are changing and after the EU released a report titled The EU Strategy for Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, he said.
While the European Parliament is playing an increasingly important role in the bloc and can influence its budget, whether its resolutions can sway the EU’s overall policies remains to be seen, he said.
Nonetheless, Taiwan-related issues are certainly grabbing more attention across Europe, he said.
Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday said that the Chinese Communist Party was planning and implementing “major” reforms, ahead of a political conclave that is expected to put economic recovery high on the agenda. Chinese policymakers have struggled to reignite growth since late 2022, when restrictions put in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic were lifted. The world’s second-largest economy is beset by a debt crisis in the property sector, persistently low consumption and high unemployment among young people. Policymakers “are planning and implementing major measures to further deepen reform in a comprehensive manner,” Xi said in a speech at the Great Hall
CIVIL DEFENSE: More reservists in alternative service would help establish a sound civil defense system for use in wartime and during natural disasters, Kuma Academy’s CEO said While a total of 120,000 reservists are expected to be called up for alternative reserve drills this year, compared with the 6,505 drilled last year, the number has been revised to 58,000 due to a postponed training date, Deputy Minster of the Interior Ma Shih-yuan (馬士元) said. In principle, the ministry still aims to call up 120,000 reservists for alternative reserve drills next year, he said, but the actual number would not be decided later until after this year’s evaluation. The increase follows a Legislative Yuan request that the Ministry of the Interior address low recruitment rates, which it made while reviewing
WARNING: China has stepped up harassment of foreign vessels after its new regulation took effect last month, an official said, citing an incident in the Diaoyutai Islands The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday linked China’s seizure of a Taiwanese fishing vessel illegally operating in its territorial waters to Beijing’s new regulation authorizing the China Coast Guard to seize boats in waters it claims. Chinese officials boarded and then seized a Taiwanese fishing vessel operating near China’s coast close to Kinmen County late on Tuesday and took it to a Chinese port, the CGA said. The Penghu-registered squid fishing vessel Da Jin Man No. 88 (大進滿88) was boarded and seized by China Coast Guard east-northeast of Liaoluo Bay (料羅灣), 17.5 nautical miles (32.4km) from Taiwan’s restricted waters off Kinmen,
DETERRENCE: Along with US$500 million in military aid and up to US$2 billion in loans and loan guarantees, the bill would allocate US$400 million to countering PRC influence The US House of Representatives on Friday approved an appropriations bill for fiscal year 2025 that includes US$500 million in military aid for Taiwan. The legislation, which authorizes funding for the US Department of State, US foreign operations and related programs for next year, passed 212-200 in the Republican-led House. The bill stipulates that the US would provide no less than US$500 million in foreign military financing for Taiwan to enhance deterrence across the Taiwan Strait, and offer Taipei up to US$2 billion in loans and loan guarantees for the same purpose. The funding would be made available under the US’ Foreign Military