(Central News Agency reporter Cheng Aifen, Vancouver, 20th) Taiwan’s presidential election is approaching, and the situation in the Taiwan Strait has attracted attention. The Canadian think tank “McDonough-Laurer Institute” held a seminar. Many scholars and experts said that as the election approaches, China’s military Intervention is increasing, and democracies need to support Taiwan more.
The Canadian think tank “MacDonald-Laurier Institute (MLI)” held a seminar on “Strengthening Democracy: Defending Taiwan in the Face of the Rise of China”. Li Chun, Parliamentary Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was invited to speak on “In He delivered a speech titled “Amidst geopolitical turbulence, forging partnership and peace” and had a conversation with Canadian officials and scholars.
Li Chun pointed out that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s fighter planes and warships continue to conduct gray zone operations in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, intending to create fear and division in Taiwanese society, with the purpose of influencing Taiwan’s upcoming presidential election, and even threatening countries that support Taiwan in an attempt to It has caused a “chilling effect” on the international community.
He said that Beijing’s ambitions go far beyond Taiwan. Just as Canada’s “Indo-Pacific Strategy” regards China as an increasingly destructive global power, China uses various gray zone tactics to try to shape an international environment conducive to authoritarian regimes and expand its global reach.
Li Chun emphasized that Taiwan is actively improving its self-defense capabilities and hopes that countries with similar ideals can support Taiwan. He is grateful to the Canadian government for its support. The recent announcement of the completion of negotiations on the Taiwan-Canada Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (FIPA) is a good example.
Kerry-Lynn S. Nankivell, director of strategic assessment of the Canadian Department of Defense Policy Bureau, said during the conversation that the prosperity and stability of the Indo-Pacific is in Canada’s interests, so Canada will strengthen close ties with regional partners such as Taiwan, such as Canada and The United States has jointly sent warships through the Taiwan Strait three times this year. Although China has interfered with military aircraft and warships, it has not undermined Canada’s determination to firmly maintain security in the Indo-Pacific region.
Scott Simon, a senior researcher at MLI and a professor at the University of Ottawa, said that China’s habit of using cyber warfare and spreading a large amount of false information has led many Taiwanese people to mistakenly believe in the theory of Western decline and believe that they must eventually compromise with Beijing. Therefore, Canada should support Taiwan more openly and let Taiwan know that many countries are on the same side as it and that the democratic camp will not decline.
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Experts participating in the talks also mentioned that if a crisis occurs in the Taiwan Strait, it will not necessarily lead to a large-scale armed conflict. MLI Senior Researcher and Transatlantic Director Balkan Devlen believes that as Beijing continues to test Taiwan’s limits by slicing sausages, Canada should consider cooperating with other countries to provide practical assistance, such as providing first-in-class assistance in the transportation of energy and food. The layout is such that when a crisis breaks out, we will not be unable to find a way to send resources to Taiwan.
The seminar attracted nearly a hundred people from the academic and overseas communities, including John McKay, Chairman of the Defense Committee of the House of Representatives of Canada, Richard Fadden, the former National Security Advisor to the Prime Minister of Canada, and Darius Skusevicius, Lithuanian Ambassador to Canada. , U.S. Political Counselor Chris Smith, Japanese Minister to Canada Tokuro Fukuyama, Representative to Canada Zeng Youren and other dignitaries attended the event, and the atmosphere was quite warm. (Editor: Chen Huiping) 1121121
