A motion in the Australian Senate and a joint statement released following the Australia-New Zealand Leaders’ Meeting that both voiced support for Taiwan are deeply appreciated by the country’s government and people, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Aug. 22.
Sponsored Aug. 21 by Sen. David Fawcett, deputy chair of the body’s Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, and Sen. Deborah O’Neill, chair of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services, the motion states that U.N. General Assembly Resolution 2758 does not establish the People’s Republic of China’s sovereignty over Taiwan, and does not determine Taiwan’s future status, nor does it limit Taiwan’s rights to participate in U.N. agencies or international organizations.
According to the MOFA, both senators are staunch supporters of Taiwan and attended last month’s annual conference of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China. The motion followed the IPAC model resolution on U.N. General Assembly Resolution 2758 greenlighted during the conference, the ministry said.
Such moves by Australia and IPAC are welcomed, the MOFA said, urging the international community to jointly counter China’s misinterpretation of the resolution and its attempts to falsely connect the resolution with its One China principle.
The motion followed a joint statement released after a bilateral talk between Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon Aug. 15-16 in Australia. The leaders reaffirmed the importance of cross-strait peace and stability and called for the peaceful resolution of relevant issues through dialogue, without coercion or use of force, the MOFA said, adding that the prime ministers reiterated their opposition to unilateral changes to the status quo.
Similar sentiments were expressed in a statement at the Australia-New Zealand Foreign and Defence Ministerial Consultations in February, the MOFA said. The ministry added that the current joint statement further expressed concerns about destabilizing and provocative behavior in the South China Sea, and called on all parties to adhere to the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea.
The MOFA welcomes like-minded partners to continue to pay attention to Taiwan Strait and South China Sea issues as they take action to uphold the rules-based international order, the ministry said. Taiwan is committed to promoting values-based diplomacy and jointly safeguarding democracy, peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific, it added. (YCH-E)
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