TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) praised France after French Minister Delegate for Europe Benjamin Haddad expressed his support for freedom of navigation and collective security in the region.
The diplomat said his country had already conducted joint patrols with the US and UK navies in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, according to a statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Haddad said France will continue to cooperate with its European and other partners to maintain security and peace in the Indo-Pacific.
The minister made the comments in response to questions from Brigitte Devesa, deputy chair of the Taiwan Friendship Group in the French Senate. She noted how China posed grave threats to Taiwan’s security, with a crisis likely to have severe repercussions for the European economy.
France and the EU needed to carefully consider a response to the constant threats against Taiwan’s democracy, Devesa said, urging resistance to Chinese imperialism.
Lin described France as a key partner sharing the same values of democracy, freedom, and human rights. Taiwan will continue to cooperate with France and other nations and to take concrete actions to maintain regional peace and stability, the minister said.
