President Tsai Ing-wen said Feb. 6 that Taiwan is committed to strengthening cooperation across the board with Switzerland while advancing bilateral relations to boost democratic resilience around the world.
Tsai made the remarks while receiving a Swiss-Taiwan parliamentary friendship group delegation at the Presidential Office in Taipei City. Led by Swiss National Council members Fabian Molina and Nicolas Walder, the group comprises fellow lawmakers Yves Nidegger, Mustafa Atici and Leonore Porchet.
Taiwan and Switzerland are like-minded partners that share the values of freedom and democracy, Tsai said. Our two trade-oriented countries also possess complementary strengths in multiple industries, she added.
The government will continue deepening bilateral economic and trade ties and protecting supply chain security with Switzerland, Tsai said, adding that she looks forward to further collaboration on disinformation and cybersecurity concerns.
According to Tsai, Taiwan is a front-line state in the fight against authoritarian expansion. The country will leave no stone unturned in maintaining regional peace and stability while calling on all democracies to work together to safeguard the democratic way of life, she said.
In response, Molina said the Swiss National Council instructed its government in 2021 to gradually deepen partnership with Taiwan in the interest of advancing business, culture, politics and science. With its seat on the U.N. Security Council in 2023 and 2024, the Central European country has assumed a special responsibility for world peace, he said, adding that cross-strait disputes should be resolved peacefully through dialogue.
Following his remarks, Walder said Taiwan is Switzerland’s seventh-largest economic partner in Asia and the two sides have strong potential to increase exchanges. To this end, the group called on the Swiss government to issue a report listing all such opportunities, establish an economic partnership agreement with Taiwan and promote Taiwan’s inclusion in international organizations such as the World Health Organization, he added. (YCH-E)
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