《TAIPEI TIMES》 Taiwan hails G7 leaders’ statement

Leaders pose for a family photograph during the G7 summit in Evian, France, on Tuesday. Photo: AFP

CORE INTEREST: It is the sixth consecutive year since 2021 that the G7 summit has underscored the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait

By Lin Tsuei-yi / Staff reporter in TOKYO, with CNA

The Presidential Office yesterday expressed its gratitude to the leaders of the G7 for issuing a joint statement reiterating their opposition to attempts to unilaterally and forcibly change the “status quo” in the Taiwan Strait.

“We highlight the importance of a free and open Indo-Pacific based on the rule of law,” said the G7 statement released on the same day.

“We reaffirm our opposition to any unilateral attempts to change the status quo, in particular by force or coercion, in the East and South China seas and across the Taiwan Strait, which should only be resolved peacefully through dialogue,” it said.

That marked the sixth consecutive year since 2021 that the G7 summit has underscored the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. A comparison of past language shows that Taiwan Strait security has increasingly been framed as part of the broader Indo-Pacific security architecture.

The Taiwan Strait issue was first included in a G7 leaders’ summit communique at the 2021 meeting in the UK. The statement at the time emphasized the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, and encouraged the peaceful resolution of cross-strait issues, but did not mention China or include language opposing unilateral attempts to change the “status quo.”

At the 2022 G7 summit in Germany, leaders reaffirmed the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and, for the first time, added language opposing any unilateral attempts to change the “status quo.”

The 2023 summit in Hiroshima, Japan, marked the most significant step-up in the past few years. In addition to reiterating the importance of peace and stability and calling for the peaceful resolution of cross-strait issues, the G7 explicitly opposed “any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion.”

Summits in 2024 and last year largely maintained the same position.

Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo （郭雅慧） said in a statement that peace in the Taiwan Strait has widespread support in the international community, and is in the core interest of the world.

Taiwan plays a crucial role in the democratic alliance and global supply chains, and will continue to bolster its defense capabilities as a responsible regional partner and member of the international community, in the interest of regional peace and global prosperity, Kuo said.

The G7 Summit was held from Monday to yesterday in Evian-les-Bains, France.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES