Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te today (27th) met with the “Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China” (IPAC) delegation, emphasizing Taiwan’s commitment to enhancing its national defense capabilities and working together with democratic countries to safeguard democracy, peace, and prosperity.
Led by IPAC Co-Chair and former leader of the British Conservative Party Iain Duncan Smith, the IPAC delegation included former Polish Foreign Minister Anna Fotyga, Swedish Parliament member Magnus Berntsson, and IPAC founder and executive director Luke de Pulford. They were accompanied by Taiwan’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Wu Chih-chung when meeting President Lai at the Presidential Office of the Republic of China.
During his speech, President Lai Ching-te expressed gratitude to the guests for their unwavering support for democratic Taiwan, mentioning last July’s IPAC annual meeting in Taipei, the largest cross-national parliamentary alliance delegation visiting Taiwan, and the passing of “IPAC Model Resolution No. 2758” to assist Taiwan in countering legal warfare from the People’s Republic of China.
President Lai pointed out that due to IPAC’s righteous actions, countries such as the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Czech Republic, and the European Parliament have successively passed resolutions or motions in support of Taiwan, and multiple executive bodies have openly expressed their support for Taiwan, hoping to see more countries respond in solidarity in the future.
President Lai Ching-te thanked IPAC for their continued concrete support for Taiwan throughout this year, including their concerns over the Chinese military exercises in April, condemnation of the vehicle crash targeting Vice President-elect Xiao during a visit to the Czech Republic in March last year, and their activities and interactions with high-level Taiwanese visitors during the Copenhagen Democracy Summit in Denmark.
“In recent years, the Chinese Communist Party’s constant cultural and military intimidation against Taiwan and surrounding countries has severely impacted regional peace and stability. Faced with the continuous convergence of authoritarian regimes such as China and Russia, democratic countries must cooperate comprehensively to safeguard peace, democracy, and freedom,” said President Lai Ching-te.
President Lai stated that Taiwan will continue to strengthen its national defense capabilities and enhance cooperation with democratic partners to collectively exert deterrence. Taiwan’s defense budget for the next year will adhere to NATO standards by accounting for 3.32% of GDP, with the goal of reaching 5% by 2030 to bolster self-defense capabilities and contribute to maintaining regional peace and stability.
Furthermore, he expressed that Taiwan will collaborate with other democratic countries in areas such as energy and AI technology industries to build more resilient industrial structures and democratic supply chains, demonstrating greater solidarity to ensure mutual economic prosperity and reinforced democracy. He looks forward to IPAC connecting through a cross-national parliamentary network to rally more like-minded allies to join hands in safeguarding regional and global democracy, peace, and prosperity.
IPAC Co-Chair Iain Duncan Smith, in his speech, expressed gratitude to President Lai for taking the time to meet with them and noted that their visit to Taiwan has been fruitful, aiding in IPAC’s planning for the upcoming year’s development goals.
Smith mentioned that the IPAC Alliance will hold a larger annual meeting in Belgium in November this year to discuss the increasingly severe challenges. The situation in Ukraine is a particularly clear example; with Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine and support from Iran, North Korea, and China, signifying a trend of authoritarian regimes coming together, affecting various areas and impacting Taiwan’s future situation.
Therefore, he emphasized that IPAC is dedicated to raising awareness among governments worldwide about this issue and preventing authoritarian countries from taking similar actions.