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Friday, March 24, 2023
Bob Stewart, British Member of Parliament (MP) and chair of the British-Taiwanese All-Party Parliamentary Group, on Wednesday called for “as much help as possible” from the United Kingdom (UK) government to aid Taiwan in defending itself during a visit to the nation.
Stewart has been leading a delegation of six MPs to Taiwan, discussing relations between the UK and Taiwan as well as regional developments. The delegates have met high level government officials.
The UK has been supplying equipment for Taiwan’s submarine program, with exports increasing after the UK granted 25 licences to companies exporting these components in the first nine months of 2022. The value of these licences was £167 million, higher than the combined total for the previous six years. When exports of submarine components to Taiwan began in 2008, the total was £3.3 million for that year.
Speaking of these exports, Stewart commented, “it came up in part, but the message we are taking back is that we should assist Taiwan in its defence as much as possible”.
Stewart described Taiwan as “on the frontlines of democracy and authoritarianism” and praised its achievements in democratic developments over the last 30 years.
After meeting the delegation, President Tsai Ing-wen thanked the UK for “reaffirming the importance of maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait”, including at international meetings such as the G7.
China’s embassy in London stated the delegation had “insisted on visiting the Taiwan region of China despite China’s resolute opposition” describing the visit as a “gross interference in China’s internal affairs and a serious wrong signal to Taiwan independence separatist forces”.
China’s ruling Communist party have claimed Taiwan is a Chinese province and stated their intention to annex the island, using force if needed. Taiwan’s democratic government have rejected the idea of Chinese rule.
While not recognising Taiwan as a sovereign nation, Western nations have shown increased support to Taiwan.
Like many Western nations, the UK’s relationship with China has worsened, with prime minister Rishi Sunak saying last November the “golden era” of relations between the two countries is over. Earlier this month, the Aukus security agreement was announced, under which the United States and UK will help supply Australia with nuclear-powered submarines.
Wen-ti Sung, a China and Taiwan expert with the Australian National University, described Aukus as raising the stakes for the UK in the region, saying “more active exploration of greater cooperation with Taiwan, a key part of this puzzle, can help Britain preemptively manage its own risks and where possible help preventing crisis from occurring”.
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