Taipei, Taiwan – Democracies must band together to combat “advancing autocracies,” NATO’s former head cautioned on Wednesday during a high-profile visit to Taiwan, which he said must be allowed to pick its own future.
Former Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen, who served as NATO Secretary General from 2009 to 2014, made the statements during a meeting with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen.
“We need to enhance our fight against, or resist, the emerging autocracies,” Rasmussen, founder of the Alliance of Democracies organization, which conducts an annual democracy summit in Copenhagen, said.
“The world’s democracies comprise 60% of the global economy; if we can work together, we will be a strong force that will inspire respect in Beijing and other dictatorial capitals.”
Taiwan is constantly threatened by Chinese invasion, which claims the self-ruled democracy as part of its territory to be retaken one day, by force if necessary.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has heightened fears that China would do the same.
Rasmussen stated to Tsai that Taiwan had the “right to exist in freedom and peace,” as well as the right to determine its own future.
President Xi Jinping, China’s most aggressive leader in a generation, has stated unequivocally that what he refers to as Taiwan’s “reunification” cannot be passed on to future generations.
Tensions rose last year as Beijing increased military pressure and conducted its largest war simulations in decades in response to a visit by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in August.
China opposes any official interactions between other countries and Taiwan and has grown increasingly irritated by visits by Western leaders.
Rasmussen’s organization was sanctioned by Beijing in 2021 after inviting Tsai to speak at its annual democracy summit for three years in a row beginning in 2020.
Tsai said in a New Year’s speech on Sunday that increased Chinese military activity around Taiwan were “unhelpful” for maintaining relations between the two countries.
“War has never been a solution to a problem. “Only communication, cooperation, and a shared aim of supporting regional security and prosperity will make more people feel safe and happy,” she explained.
Source: AP
