Tokyo, 4 November, /AJMEDIA/
Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen held talks with an official delegation of the European Parliament at her office in Taipei on Thursday, a move certain to draw a rebuke from China.
The EU delegation’s visit comes at a time when the Tsai government is seeking to strengthen ties with Europe against the backdrop of intensifying pressure for unification from Beijing, which considers the self-ruled island part of its territory.
In her opening remarks at the talks, Tsai said she understood that the delegation had come to learn more about how Taiwan handles disinformation.
She stressed the need for a “democratic alliance against disinformation,” saying “the challenges we face are global in nature.”
Among other issues that were expected to be taken up at the talks were cyberattacks as well as the response to the coronavirus pandemic and stronger economic ties between the European Union and Taiwan, including over semiconductors.
Raphael Glucksmann, a French member of the parliament who heads the delegation, has been the subject of retaliatory sanctions by China due to his criticism of alleged human rights abuses against the Uyghur Muslim minority in the far-western Xinjiang region.
The European Parliament in October adopted with an overwhelming majority a report recommending that EU-Taiwan relations be strengthened.
Taiwan’s foreign minister, Joseph Wu, visited Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Belgium last month.
The 13-member delegation, including seven EU parliamentarians, arrived in Taiwan on Wednesday for a three-day visit. The group met with Premier Su Tseng-chang later that day.
