TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The G7 foreign ministers reiterated the importance of peace in the Taiwan Strait in a joint statement issued on Friday (April 19).
Regional peace and stability are “indispensable to security and prosperity for the whole international community,” the ministers said, calling for a peaceful resolution of cross-strait issues.
They also reaffirmed their support for Taiwan’s inclusion in international organizations, such as the World Health Assembly and World Health Organization technical meetings. There is no change in the basic position of the G7 members on Taiwan, they added.
The ministers expressed concern about China’s human rights violations in Xinjiang and Tibet and pointed out the "deterioration of pluralism” in Hong Kong. They also urged China to stop activities undermining democratic institutions and the security of communities.
The joint statement follows U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink’s meeting with China’s Taiwan Affairs Office Deputy Director Qiu Kaiming (仇開明) in Beijing on April 15. Accompanied by U.S. National Security Council Senior Director for China and Taiwan Affairs Sarah Beran, Kritenbrink stressed the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.
He also assured Beijing there was no change to the U.S. “one China” policy.
Despite calls from the international community for regional peace, China has continued to ramp up military activity around Taiwan. The threat of a potential invasion of Taiwan has prompted the U.S. to help beef up Taiwanese defense.
Most recently, U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson proposed the 2024 Indo-Pacific Security Supplemental Appropriations Act on April 17 that allocates US$2 billion (NT$65.07 billion) from the Foreign Military Financing Program for Taiwan and other regional security partners for “confronting Chinese aggression.” It also provides an additional US$1.9 billion to “replenish defense articles and defense services” for Taiwan and other partners.
