The unwavering support for cross-strait peace and stability recently expressed by German Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs Johann Wadephul is deeply appreciated by the government and people of Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Aug. 20.
The backing was expressed at a press conference following the inaugural Germany-Japan strategic dialogue held Aug. 18 in Tokyo. At the event, Wadephul met with Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya.
According to Wadephul, Germany and Japan have common security interests in the Indo-Pacific, including the Taiwan Strait and East and South China Seas. He expressed concern over regional tensions and China’s continued threat to unilaterally change the status quo, adding that the U.N. Charter’s prohibition on the use of force applies to the region.
The statement released Aug. 17 by Germany’s Federal Foreign Office prior to the minister’s departure for Japan included similar sentiments. China’s increasingly aggressive stance in the region also has consequences for Europe because it places the basic rules of global cooperation at stake, it said, adding that Germany is countering this through its commitment to upholding an international order based on strong, binding rules for all.
Wadephul’s remarks and the statement demonstrate that maintaining cross-strait peace and stability is in the common interest of Germany and other like-minded partners, as well as the consensus of the global community, the MOFA said. The ministry will continue working with Germany and other democracies to safeguard cross-strait and regional peace while defending freedom, democracy and the rules-based international order, it added. (YCH-E)
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