To my mind, anyone who is a friend of democracy, human rights and the rule of law is a friend of Taiwan. I am well aware of the ever increasing economic, political and diplomatic influence of the People’s Republic of China – a reminder of which we received last week as the PRC celebrated its sixtieth birthday. William Hague, in looking ahead to the foreign policy of a future Conservative government, has also spoken about the vital importance of a broad strategic relationship with the PRC. However, I believe – and here I'm speaking in a personal capacity rather than as a spokesman – that there’s also scope within our foreign policy for a strong and supportive relationship with Taiwan.
I am delighted that this year for the very first time, delegates from our sister party in Taiwan, the Kuomintang or KMT, will be attending our conference as official observers. As chairman of the European Parliament-Taiwan Friendship Group, I have long taken an interest in Taiwan and its uncertain place on the world stage. I am particularly pleased that the KMT delegation will be coming to Manchester at a time when relations across the Taiwan Straits have improved to such a degree that confidence-building measures previously unthinkable are now being instituted with rapid ease.
The KMT is part of the International Democratic Union, the global alliance of centre-right parties to which the Conservative Party belongs. Many other IDU partners are also sending delegates to conference. Taiwan remains largely isolated internationally but the vigour of its democracy and the strength of its highly sophisticated free-market economy are perhaps its greatest strengths. The IDU therefore offers Taiwan a chance to interact internationally with like-minded partners on an informal and mutually beneficial basis. It’s precisely this kind of opportunity that offers Taiwan a really effective way to make its voice heard on the international stage.
Before the KMT returned to power in May 2008, following the election of President Ma Ying-jeou, Taiwan’s foreign policy towards the PRC was considerably more confrontational. The outgoing administration of Chen Shui-bian – now in jail for life having been convicted of major corruption – held a referendum asking Taiwanese whether they wished to join the United Nations. But President Ma has realized the futility of such gestures, which the PRC blocks at every turn, and has set his sights much lower, seeking only ‘meaningful participation’ – in other words, observer status – in UN organizations. The wisdom of this pragmatic policy was rewarded with support from the European Union last September, and Taiwan – after the PRC backed down from its previous implacable opposition – was then invited to attend the World Health Assembly as an observer. In the European Parliament I'm currently supporting Taiwan's efforts to participate in the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change, an ambition based on the premise that meterological phenomena like the recent devastating Typhoon Morakot will increase in frequency in future due to the effects of climate change. Such participation should be Taiwan's natural right and not subject to a political veto by the PRC, which opposes any further Taiwanese involvement in international bodies.
President Ma has also adopted a conciliatory and progressive approach to cross-Straits relations, notwithstanding the fact that the PRC is still aiming hundreds of missiles at Taiwan. For the first time direct flights between Taiwan and the PRC are now regular, and even a free trade agreement is now being mooted. President Ma’s emphasis on cordial working relations has also helped Taiwan to rebound well from the economic crisis.
So how should a Conservative government deal with Taiwan? I am not suggesting that there should be a significant departure from the 'One China' policy of the past few decades – a policy that both sides now effectively subscribe too (albeit with differing interpretations) and that has helped to stabilize the potentially inflammatory cross-Straits situation. After all, President Ma himself has declared that his overarching priority will be the maintenance of the status quo – no war, no independence declaration and no reunification. It is also obvious from the many pseudo-embassies ('trade missions', etc.) staffed by senior diplomats in Taipei that most Western countries, despite maintaining a fiction of non-recognition, consider Taiwan to be de facto independent. Therefore, a sudden alteration in our policy could be detrimental to the interests of our KMT allies; we should also be guided by them.
But I also believe that we do have a moral duty to Taiwan, a fellow democracy, to ensure that the democratic freedom of all Taiwanese is respected and enhanced. In the past decade much of Western foreign policy has been based on the premise of extending or imposing democracy in countries ill-suited to the concept, whereas Taiwan is now a mature democracy that the world sadly tends to ignore.
A Conservative government is never going to grant diplomatic recognition to Taiwan, and President Ma himself has expressly stated that Taiwan, as the Republic of China, is not seeking to engage in the diplomatic tit-for-tat of the past 35 years. But a Conservative government could consider taking some steps to demonstrate its respect for Taiwan’s democracy, for instance by being flexible about extending partial diplomatic privileges to Taiwanese diplomats in the UK. This is a step that can be taken without any recourse to the question of statehood, and indeed is already in effect in the United States and some EU member states such as the Czech Republic and Slovakia – yet the PRC has not withdrawn its ambassadors in protest. I believe we should also respect the call of the KMT government when it stated that the future of Taiwan is ultimately for the people of Taiwan to decide.
Finally, welcome to our friends and allies from the KMT. If you are at conference and you see them around Manchester in the next few days, please say hello and make them welcome!