Ambassador Vivia Chang
Representative / Taipei Economic and Cultural Office
Only three days after Taiwan’s new President Lai Ching-te took office, China, as it has done on previous occasions, began military exercises around Taiwan, aimed at undermining stability in the Straits and threatening peace and democracy, values firmly and firmly established in Taiwanese society.
Our Government has immediately urged China to exercise self-restraint and stop any such action, which only increases tensions in the region and sows concern not only in the region but throughout the world.
It is clear that peace and security in the Taiwan Strait has now become a matter of international concern and consensus. Despite this, China continues to threaten our democracy and unilaterally alter the status quo in the Strait.
The US, Japan, Australia and the European Union have strongly underlined the strategic importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait for regional and global security and prosperity, and urged all parties to show restraint and resolve their differences through dialogue.
In the face of such actions, Taiwan will maintain its firm commitment to peace in the region, and will continue to strengthen its cooperative ties with like-minded partners to jointly safeguard the values of freedom and democracy.
The new President Lai Ching-te mentioned in his inauguration speech that the two sides on both sides of the Straits must be responsible for promoting peace in the region. For Taiwan, peace is the only option, as President Lai sets out four inescapable pillars: strengthening national defence, greater economic security, stable and principled leadership for cross-Straits relations, and value-based diplomacy.
We will continue to lay the foundation for a stable and secure Indo-Pacific and for a Taiwan that shows itself to the world as a free country, a mature and consolidated democracy, a beacon of freedom and a bastion of human rights in Asia.
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