MOFA Minister Wu urges free world to unite in face of authoritarianism

2022/07/01

The government and people are committed to defending Taiwan’s democracy, and the free world must unite in the face of authoritarian expansionism, Foreign Minister Jaushieh Joseph Wu said June 28.
 
Taiwan draws three lessons from Russia’s brutal invasion, Wu said. The threat of authoritarianism, the importance of asymmetric combat capabilities and civil defense, and the need for democracies to stand with Ukraine, he added.
 
Wu made the remarks during the Brussels Forum organized by Washington-based think tank German Marshall Fund of the United States. Other participants in the session included U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy and Laura Thornton, director and senior fellow at GMF’s Alliance for Securing Democracy.
 
GMF is a nonpartisan public policy organization promoting understanding and cooperation on issues critical to transatlantic and global interests. The foundation’s Brussels Forum is one of the pre-eminent platforms for addressing shared challenges.
 
According to Wu, Taiwan’s democracy is facing unprecedented challenges from China’s cognitive warfare as part of ongoing efforts to undermine the people’s confidence. The government is mounting a coordinated response with local media and nongovernmental organizations to track and respond to disinformation, as well as heighten public awareness, Wu said.
 
Regarding China’s economic coercion, Wu said bans on Taiwan’s pineapples and groupers are in line with those affecting products from Australia, the Czech Republic and Lithuania. Democracies must unite and support one another to overcome such tactics, he added.
 
In a tweet on its official Twitter account, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said “Minister Wu hammered home a powerful message at the #BrusselsForum: Taiwan’s democracy is under threat. #China’s cognitive warfare, cyberattacks, & hybrid & military activities are relentless. But our country stands strong & the people united. #Taiwan is an #IslandOfResilience!”


Source: Taiwan Today (https://taiwantoday.tw/index.php)