Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) yesterday emphasized Taiwan’s commitment to defending itself in a call for the nation’s allies and like-minded partners to preserve global peace and prosperity.
To invest in Taiwan’s capabilities is to invest in peace, she told this year’s Halifax International Security Forum in Taipei in a closing speech.
Taiwan is a small nation, but the Taiwanese ethics of hard work, innovation and resilience can be wielded to extraordinary effect as a force for justice and progress, she said, adding that the nation is indispensable to peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.
Photo: screen grab from the Presidential Office’s Flickr
The nation’s hosting of the event showed that people from around the world could come together to rally in defense of their shared values, she added.
The forum’s participants share a firm belief in the democratic system of government’s importance to human rights, economic prosperity and international peace, Hsiao said.
Yet, tragedies and conflicts afflict the world every day, she said, adding that leaders cannot afford to be complacent, and must remain cautious and strive to do better with a sense of urgency.
Photo: screen grab from the Presidential Office’s Flickr
Taiwan has increased its defense spending, strengthened the training and capabilities of military reserves, and obtained better weapons systems for its armed forces, Hsiao said.
Concurrently, the nation has made use of Taiwanese innovation and the capabilities of the private sector to enhance national security, she said.
Taiwan has taken a precise and specific approach to bolster its ability to defend itself against the nation’s most significant threat, the Chinese Communist Party and its People’s Liberation Army, she said.
China frequently intrudes into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone, and conducts cyberattacks against the nation in a bid to undermine Taiwanese confidence in the government and democratic institutions, Hsiao said.
Beijing’s “gray zone” tactics conducted across multiple domains require a multidomain response from a determined nation, she said.
President William Lai’s (賴清德) Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Committee has been established to augment the nation’s civil defense, response to natural disasters and economic resilience, Hsiao said.
Taiwan has observed global geopolitical changes that have called for a renewed focus on defending its values and turning the current crisis into an opportunity, she said.
Meanwhile, Akie Abe, wife of the late Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe, also spoke at the forum, saying that holding the event in Taiwan is an act that holds special meaning amid the current period of international turmoil.
Citing her late husband, Akie Abe reiterated that a Taiwan contingency is a Japan contingency, and that peace in the Taiwan Strait is crucial to the region, adding that Shinzo Abe’s love of peace carries an important message to the world.
Separately, Lai yesterday also met with Akie Abe at the Presidential Office to thank her for Shinzo Abe’s ideals, and contributions to regional peace and prosperity, and called for the continued support of the nation’s friends and allies.
Additional reporting by Su Yung-yao
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