Taiwan on the front line of defense against authoritarianism (Tsai)

TAIPEI (Kyodo) — Taiwan is at the forefront of defending against authoritarian regimes, former Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen said Monday, after China conducted a new large-scale military exercise in the waters surrounding the democratic and autonomous island.

Noting that authoritarian regimes aim to erode people’s trust in democratic institutions “in an increasingly aggressive manner” through measures such as military threats and invasions, “Taiwan stands at the forefront of the assault,” Tsai said at a forum in Prague, according to her. desk.

Tsai, who resigned in May after leading the island for eight years, said Taiwan had faced “constant intimidation” for more than half a century from China, which had “tried by all means the possible means of annexing » the territory.

These threats have only intensified as leaders of other democracies have demonstrated their support and willingness to collaborate and visit Taiwan, she said.

The former president stressed that “democracy is truly the only option for Taiwan” and called for “unity and cooperation” among democratic partners to counter intimidation by authoritarian regimes.

China’s military held drills near Taiwan on Monday, “a stark warning” to those seeking the island’s independence, after the territory’s president, Lai Ching-te, reiterated last week that the two parts were not subordinate to each other.

Tsai, who is on her first overseas trip since leaving office, will also visit the European Parliament in Brussels, according to Taiwanese media. She belongs to the ruling, pro-independence Progressive Democratic Party.

Taiwan maintains no official diplomatic relations with any European state aside from the Vatican. However, the European Parliament has shown strong support for the island’s democracy in recent years, advocating deeper engagement between the two sides.

Mainland China has criticized Tsai’s trip to Europe and expressed opposition to anyone seeking “Taiwan independence” during visits to countries with diplomatic relations with China.

Communist-ruled China and Taiwan have been governed separately since their separation due to a civil war in 1949. Beijing views the self-ruled island as a renegade province that must be unified with the mainland, by force if necessary.