A group of visiting members of the European Parliament told Taiwan that in the face of a more confident China, it is not the only country that hopes to survive as a democracy, just like Brussels is trying to repair relations with Beijing.

Raphael Glucksmann, a French member of the European Parliament sanctioned by China, said that Europe recognizes Taiwan’s democratic principles.

“We came here with a very simple message: Taiwan is not alone,” Glucksman said at a press conference after the high-profile visit to the country. “Taiwan’s democracy is very important… in line with Europe’s long-term interests.”

The delegation from the Special Committee for Foreign Intervention in All Democratic Processes in the EU, including false information, marked the first official visit to Taiwan by a member of the European Parliament.

Since arriving in Taipei on Wednesday, the delegation has met with Taiwanese officials, experts and civil society groups to discuss how best to combat false information, an issue that has plagued East Asian democracy for a long time without compromising civil and political rights.

The European Union previously listed China as a source of false information about Covid-19, and Taiwan also Tracking fake news And social media rumors about the virus in Chinese media.

Although the parliamentary delegation is completely independent of the EU’s official foreign policy agency, it highlights the challenges that Brussels faces in handling relations with China, as the EU is working to ease tensions with Beijing and trying to balance its substantial economic and geopolitical interests. . .

The EU’s formal policy towards China is the complex and seemingly contradictory name of “partners, negotiation partners, economic competitors, and systemic competitors”, highlighting the lack of consensus among the 27 member states.

Regarding Taiwan, EU officials emphasized that the EU has always pursued the “One China Policy”, but individual member states have legitimate interests in developing cooperation with Taipei without recognizing their national status.

After the European Union imposed sanctions on China for its treatment of Uighur Muslims, relations between Beijing and Brussels plummeted in March, and China imposed sanctions on some members of the European Parliament, including Glucksman.

This undermines the efforts of the EU-China Comprehensive Investment Agreement (CAI), a landmark trade agreement between the EU and Beijing that has been the cornerstone of Brussels’ China policy before the outbreak of sanctions.

But in recent weeks, EU officials have tried to draw a line between the consequences and find a more constructive tone. A person familiar with the discussions said that last month’s phone call between European Council President Charles Michel and Chinese President Xi Jinping touched on “areas of common concern” for the first time since the sanctions dispute.

China claims that Taiwan is part of its territory and threatens that if Taipei refuses to surrender indefinitely, it will invade.In the past year, Beijing Increased air and naval operations Close to Taiwan.

On Friday, Andrius Kubilius, the former prime minister and member of the delegation of Lithuania, stated that the situation in Taiwan echoes the challenge posed by Russia, which has intervened in countries such as Belarus and Ukraine.