Dozens of lawmakers from over twenty countries across the five continents arrived in Taipei on Monday (July 29th) to attend the summit scheduled for the 30th. This is the largest delegation of legislators to visit Taiwan in history. Lawmakers from various countries revealed that Chinese diplomats had pressured them not to attend the Taiwan summit. However, such coercive tactics from China were met with resistance from lawmakers from multiple nations.
These lawmakers come from different countries and political parties and are members of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC), gathering in Taipei for the annual summit. IPAC members aim to make decisions on the specific coordination work to be carried out in their respective parliaments upon returning home. The summit will be conducted in Japanese, Mandarin, English, and Spanish.
The stability of the Taiwan Strait will be the top agenda, and lawmakers will also discuss issues related to technology security. Prior to this, there were reports that hundreds of IPAC email accounts had been targeted in attacks by APT31, a hacking group supported by China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS). APT31 is part of a cyber espionage program operated by the National Security Office of Hubei Province under the Chinese State Security Department.
According to the Associated Press, lawmakers from Bolivia, Colombia, Slovakia, North Macedonia, Bosnia, and another anonymous Asian country stated that they received messages, calls, and requests for urgent meetings that clashed with their plans to attend the Taipei summit.
IPAC has long faced pressure from the Chinese government. Earlier this year, a U.S. indictment revealed that some IPAC members faced sanctions from China.
Luke de Pulford, the executive director of IPAC, stated that pressure from Chinese officials in the past few days has been unprecedented. In previous IPAC meetings held at other locations, Chinese diplomats would generally only engage with lawmakers after the meetings had ended. This year marks the first time the annual IPAC meeting is being held in Taiwan, and there have been organized attempts to prevent lawmakers from attending.
The Associated Press interviewed three lawmakers and reviewed messages and emails sent by Chinese diplomats to them.
One message sent to North Macedonian lawmaker, Antonio Miloshoski, read: “I am Wu from the Chinese Embassy, we heard you received an invitation from IPAC, will you attend the meeting in Taiwan next week?”
Another lawmaker told the Associated Press that a Chinese diplomat reached out to her party leader asking to stop her from traveling to Taiwan.
“They contacted the chairman of my party to request that he stop me from going to Taiwan,” said Bosnian lawmaker Sanela Klarić, “They tried to prevent me from traveling to my country…this is not allowed at all.”
Klarić expressed that such pressure was unpleasant but only strengthened her resolve to visit Taiwan.
“I am indeed resisting those countries or societies that manipulate and control people using fear,” Klarić said.
She also added that the Chinese threats reminded her of the threats and intimidations she faced during the Bosnian War in the 1990s. “I really hate the feeling of being intimidated by someone,” she said.
The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not respond to requests for comments from the Associated Press.
De Pulford stated that such Chinese pressure constitutes “serious foreign interference.” He said, “They (Chinese officials) think they can interfere with the travel plans of foreign lawmakers, this is absolutely disgraceful.”
Former UK Security Minister Tom Tugendhat mentioned in an IPAC press release, “Now is the most crucial time to stand with Taiwan. This great unity demonstrates that the stability across the Strait is of significant concern to legislators and political factions worldwide.”
Pina Picierno, Vice President of the European Parliament, stated in an IPAC press release, “IPAC is creating space for bipartisan consensus, for bipartisan civilization and coordination, demonstrating that some issues transcend party affiliations and regions. The Taiwan issue is undoubtedly one of them.”
China has been trying to lure Taiwan’s diplomatic allies. Nauru, a Pacific island nation, switched recognition to Beijing earlier this year, reducing Taiwan’s diplomatic allies to 12.
IPAC stated in a release that some lawmakers will be meeting with senior Taiwanese officials.
On Monday, when Taiwan’s Vice President Lai Ching-te met with the IPAC delegation, she mentioned that Beijing continues military activities in the Taiwan Strait and hybrid coercion in the gray areas. Taiwan is facing significant challenges in its geopolitical situation, and the visit of the delegation comes at an important moment for Taiwan to cooperate with all countries to ensure democratic values, peace, and prosperity.
China’s pressure on IPAC members traveling to Taiwan has sparked strong backlash.
The Associated Press reported that Centa Rek, a senator from Bolivia, stated that a Chinese diplomat called her, telling her not to go to Taiwan, claiming that Taiwan was managed by a “usurper president” and that the meeting was organized by an entity that “does not comply with the mainland China policy terms.” When she refused, the Chinese diplomat said he would report her decision to the Chinese embassy.
Rek interpreted the call as a “veiled threat” and submitted a protest letter.
“I told him that this is an unacceptable intrusion, I will not accept any government’s orders or intrusions,” Rek told the Associated Press. “These are personal decisions, in my view, he (Chinese official) has exceeded all international political norms.”
De Pulford stated that such coercive measures will only make the attendees more determined to participate in the summit.
Miriam Lexmann, a Slovakian MEP at the European Parliament, told the Associated Press that this pressure gave her even more reason to come to Taiwan. She expressed her desire to exchange information, discuss how to respond to China’s challenges and threats to world democracy, and, of course, support Taiwan.
Jan Paternotte, a member of the Dutch political party D66, stated on social media platform X, “I still came,” emphasizing that it should not be up to China to dictate what foreign lawmakers should or should not do.
Catalin Tenita, a member of the Romanian Parliament, posted on social media platform X, “Greetings to everyone in Taiwan.” Tenita attended the IPAC summit in Taiwan for the second time. He stated that he has fallen in love with Taiwan and has experienced the most friendly, honest, sincere, and open culture here.