TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Ulrich Lechte, a member of the German federal parliament, said on Tuesday (Aug. 6) that democratic countries should support Taiwan, as a fellow democratic country, in joining the UN, the Central News Agency (CNA) reports.

Lechte is currently visiting Taiwan. During an interview on Tuesday afternoon, he told the press that other democratic countries should support Taiwan, which he described as a vibrant democratic country that values individual freedom and rule of law, joining in international organizations, including WHO, UNFCCC, and INTERPOL.

Lechte said that the “one-China policy,” which prevents Taiwan from joining the UN, is wrong. He said that Taiwan should join the UN in the name of “Taiwan” and that Taiwan should exist as a country independent from China.

Western democratic countries used to believe that China would gradually democratize after the economic reforms in the 1980s. However, it has turned out that the democratization of China is unlikely to happen for at least two decades, if ever at all, Lechte explained.

He warned that China is a great threat to all democratic countries because it is telling other authoritarian countries that, if the people are economically satisfied, democracy is not needed at all and dictators can remain in power.

Democratic countries should stand together to prove that democracy is not just a different but a better form of government than authoritarianism, Lechte advocated. He also called on Taiwan to take a “harder” stance on appealing to participate in international organizations.