The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday thanked French lawmakers for sending a letter to the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China to voice support for Taiwan.
French newspaper Le Monde published the letter signed by French Senator Olivier Cadic and a group of cross-party lawmakers on Tuesday, a day before French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen arrived in Beijing for an official visit.
“The time is not for weakness or silence” given Chinese interference in Hong Kong and its ambitions over Taiwan, the letter says, urging Macron to send a firm message to Beijing during his trip.
Photo: Lu Yi-hsuan, Taipei Times
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) intention to unite with Taiwan, which is manifested by increased intimidation of all kinds, is of growing concern, it says.
“It now seems obvious that Xi’s China has, in all areas, decided to accelerate history,” it says.
China has tightened its control over Hong Kong in the past three years in defiance of the Sino-British Joint Declaration, which exemplifies its desire to expand its clout, the letter says.
Hong Kong’s National Security Law, which came into force in June 2020, curtails people’s freedoms and renders the Hong Kong administration a puppet government that is subservient to Beijing, it says.
The UN Human Rights Committee last year recommended the immediate repeal of the law, as it violates civil and political rights, the letter says, adding that the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights last month also found that the law violated the rights of journalists and academics.
“What is currently happening in Hong Kong could happen again tomorrow in Taiwan if the international community does not react preventively,” the lawmakers said in the letter.
They called on the West to denounce human rights violations in Hong Kong to support the victims and “let Beijing know that its unacceptable behavior in Hong Kong will not be accepted in Taiwan,” adding that the gesture is “crucial and imperative.”
OPPORTUNITY
Macron and Von der Leyen’s visit presents a good opportunity to issue a warning against Beijing and to affirm unfailing solidarity with Taiwan, the letter says.
The ministry thanked the lawmakers for their concern for security in the Taiwan Strait, adding that Taiwan would continue to work with France and other like-minded countries to maintain a peaceful and open Indo-Pacific region, as well as safeguard democracy and freedom.
The French parliament has been taking concrete actions to support Taiwan, the ministry said, citing two pro-Taiwan resolutions passed by the French Senate and the French National Assembly in May 2021 and November 2021 respectively.
Delegations from the French parliament have visited Taiwan four times since October 2021, it said.
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An Akizuki-class destroyer last month made the first-ever solo transit of a Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ship through the Taiwan Strait, Japanese government officials with knowledge of the matter said yesterday. The JS Akizuki carried out a north-to-south transit through the Taiwan Strait on Feb. 5 as it sailed to the South China Sea to participate in a joint exercise with US, Australian and Philippine forces that day. The Japanese destroyer JS Sazanami in September last year made the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s first-ever transit through the Taiwan Strait, but it was joined by vessels from New Zealand and Australia,
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