The free world should come together to support Taiwan and protect the nation’s achievements, former British prime minister Liz Truss told President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday in Taipei.
“What is being achieved here in Taiwan must be protected,” Truss said, calling on democracies around the world to support Taiwan’s endeavors to pursue democracy and economic development.
Freedom and democracy serve the best interests of societies, as they bring prosperity and happiness to people, she said.
Photo: REUTERS
The UK is “very clear that we need to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait,” as the world is facing increasing struggles between democracies and authoritarian regimes, she said.
Taiwan’s ability to defend itself must be ensured, she added.
In addition to security issues, the UK should also strengthen economic ties with Taiwan, she said.
“It’s no understatement to say that Taiwan powers the modern world,” Truss said.
She said that she found Taiwan’s economic achievements impressive, including strong growth rates and leadership in critical industries, especially while facing intimidation from China.
Truss mentioned the idea of forming an “economic NATO,” a concept she had talked about in a speech in Taipei on Wednesday, to allow like-minded democratic countries to cooperate economically to “challenge coercion by authoritarian regimes.”
Tsai welcomed Truss’ first visit to the country, and thanked her for her long-term support for Taiwan’s international participation and security issues across the Taiwan Strait.
The UK “elevated the Taiwan Strait issue from a regional to a global matter” thanks to Truss, as she encouraged G7 countries and NATO to publicly emphasize the importance of maintaining cross-strait peace and stability while serving as British foreign secretary from 2021 to last year, Tsai said.
Truss underlined the importance of democratic allies working together to defend against authoritarian expansion at the Copenhagen Democracy Summit on Monday, in which Tsai also participated, she said.
Taiwan has been sending the same message to the world: “By acting in solidarity, democracies around the globe will make each other stronger,” she said.
Cooperation between Taiwan and the UK has yielded fruitful outcomes in different sectors over the past few years, she said, adding that she hopes to see more exchanges in supply chain resilience, cybersecurity and technological innovation.
Tsai said she hopes to sign a bilateral trade agreement with the UK to further bolster economic ties between the two sides.
Truss is scheduled to conclude her visit today.
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon yesterday morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan from tomorrow to Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was approximately 950km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost point, the CWA said. It is expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, it said. The agency said it could issue a sea warning in the early hours of today and a land warning in the afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving at
DISCONTENT: The CCP finds positive content about the lives of the Chinese living in Taiwan threatening, as such video could upset people in China, an expert said Chinese spouses of Taiwanese who make videos about their lives in Taiwan have been facing online threats from people in China, a source said yesterday. Some young Chinese spouses of Taiwanese make videos about their lives in Taiwan, often speaking favorably about their living conditions in the nation compared with those in China, the source said. However, the videos have caught the attention of Chinese officials, causing the spouses to come under attack by Beijing’s cyberarmy, they said. “People have been messing with the YouTube channels of these Chinese spouses and have been harassing their family members back in China,”
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said there are four weather systems in the western Pacific, with one likely to strengthen into a tropical storm and pose a threat to Taiwan. The nascent tropical storm would be named Usagi and would be the fourth storm in the western Pacific at the moment, along with Typhoon Yinxing and tropical storms Toraji and Manyi, the CWA said. It would be the first time that four tropical cyclones exist simultaneously in November, it added. Records from the meteorology agency showed that three tropical cyclones existed concurrently in January in 1968, 1991 and 1992.
UPDATED FORECAST: The warning covered areas of Pingtung County and Hengchun Peninsula, while a sea warning covering the southern Taiwan Strait was amended The Central Weather Administration (CWA) at 5:30pm yesterday issued a land warning for Typhoon Usagi as the storm approached Taiwan from the south after passing over the Philippines. As of 5pm, Usagi was 420km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost tip, with an average radius of 150km, the CWA said. The land warning covered areas of Pingtung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春), and came with an amended sea warning, updating a warning issued yesterday morning to cover the southern part of the Taiwan Strait. No local governments had announced any class or office closures as of press time last night. The typhoon
RSS