Two motions adopted by the Netherlands’ House of Representatives supporting Taiwan are welcomed Nov. 30 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The first motion, co-initiated by Reps. Sjoerd Sjoerdsma and Kees van der Staaij, states that countries across Europe should learn lessons from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Democracies must be united to counter threats brought by authoritarian regimes, it added.
Taiwan has the right to defend itself in the event China ever tries to take the country by force, the motion said, adding that Taiwan is of great strategic importance to the Netherlands and the EU.
According to the motion, Taiwan is a thriving democracy with great economic and trade opportunities. It urges the Netherlands government to strengthen bilateral ties with Taiwan in every possible way while helping boost the Taiwan-EU relationship.
The second motion, proposed by Rep. Wybren van Haga, requests that the EU member state express support for Taiwan and employ all diplomatic means to prevent China from taking any action against it.
According to the MOFA, the passage of the two motions underscores the rock-solid support from the Dutch lower house. The move follows three motions expressing similar sentiments that the legislative body adopted last November, the ministry added.
The two sides share the universal values of freedom, democracy and respect for human rights and rule of law, the MOFA said, adding that bilateral cooperation will continue in areas spanning the economy, energy, the environment, epidemic prevention, innovation, technology and trade, as well as efforts to ensure aviation security and combat climate change and transnational crime.
As a responsible member of the global community, Taiwan is committed to working with like-minded partners such as the Netherlands to promote peace, stability and prosperity worldwide, the MOFA added. (YCH-E)
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