Brussels/Prague/Taipei, 3-11-2021 – As the first ever European Parliament delegation eight MEPs are visiting Taiwan this week. The mission was initiated by Czech MEP Markéta Gregorová as the coordinator of the Special Committee on Foreign Interference and Disinformation. These will therefore be the main areas for numerous meetings with the NGO sector and experts. However, at this historic moment, the EP delegation will also meet with representatives of the Taiwanese Government and the President.
According to Markéta Gregorová, the event comes as the result of a longer-lasting trend of rapprochement with democratic Taiwan, which finds itself under increasing Chinese pressure. The historic visit is thus largely a continuation of the process of reassessing EU-China relations.
Markéta Gregorová, MEP, member of Special Committee on Foreign Interference, including Disinformation, comments:
“We are pleased to discuss with Taiwan’s executive, expert and non-governmental counterparts on how Taiwan manages to fight intensifying disinformation efforts not only from the Chinese side. Their methods of defense and tactics can be of great benefit to us. But we can also offer some valuable insights from our situation, practices, and even negotiations with representatives of large social networks, where we as the EU naturally have a stronger position than Taiwan. I hope this is the first meeting of many. And that we will soon see progress in our mutual relations, whether in the framework of investment or trade agreements. Taiwan deserves our support, as a country it cultivates democracy, has had great results in fighting the pandemic, and should be part of the UN or the WHO, in my opinion. The EU respects One-China policy, but the reasons are falling apart. And I say openly that it is time to start talking about the One-Taiwan policy. Chinese interference has intensified, aggressive diplomacy to several member states has increased, including threats – we in the Czech Republic know this all too well – and there is even a list of my colleagues who are banned from entering Chinese territory. It should come as no surprise that the EU intends to respond to this.“
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