Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen met with German lawmakers this week in what would be among the latest visits by foreign lawmakers to the island nation. Tsai stressed the importance of the world’s democracies uniting amidst increased tensions with China.
Tsai met with a delegation of senior German lawmakers on Tuesday in a visit criticized by China, which claims the island nation as its territory and has protested against any visit by foreign governments. In her remarks during their meeting, Tsai said that democracies must stand together while calling on Berlin to help maintain the “regional order.”
“Starting next year, Taiwan’s mandatory military service will be extended to one year. This will bolster our defense capabilities and demonstrate our determination to defend our homeland and safeguard democracy,” said Tsai. “We look forward to Taiwan, Germany, and other democratic partners jointly maintaining the regional order and prosperity.”
Lawmaker Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmerman, who chairs the German parliamentary defense committee and is a member of Partner Free Democrats, the junior coalition of Chancellor Olaf Scholz, said Russia’s invasion of Ukraine served as a wake-up call to the world and that Taiwan and Germany are friends.
Germany has no formal diplomatic relations with the democratically-governed island but is working on a new strategy to review its relations with China in an effort to reduce dependence on the world power.
“That’s the reason why we come to your country, to your wonderful island, to say to the world that we stand close together as democratic states,” said Zimmerman.
China has been conducting increasing military drills close to the island since August when US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited. Beijing has also sought to pressure Taiwan to cede to China and has not ruled out the use of military force to do so. On Monday, Taipei criticized China for its latest incursion into Taiwanese territory, holding live combat drills near the island, the second of such drills in less than a month.
The Taiwanese presidential office shut down the allegations by the Chinese Eastern Theater Command, which claimed that the aim of their live combat drills was to “resolutely counter the provocative actions of external forces and Taiwan independence separatist forces.”
The office said China’s claims were “groundless” and stressed that peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the region was the common responsibility of both nations.