TAIPEI (Reuters) -Former Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen will visit Berlin to address a conference next week, her office said on Wednesday, as the diplomatically isolated island pushes ahead with a new outreach to Europe. Chinese-claimed and democratically governed Taiwan has formal diplomatic ties only with the Vatican in Europe, but countries from Britain and France […]
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Former Taiwan president Tsai to visit Germany in outreach to Europe
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TAIPEI (Reuters) -Former Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen will visit Berlin to address a conference next week, her office said on Wednesday, as the diplomatically isolated island pushes ahead with a new outreach to Europe.
Chinese-claimed and democratically governed Taiwan has formal diplomatic ties only with the Vatican in Europe, but countries from Britain and France to Lithuania and Poland have disregarded Beijing’s complaints to allow visits by acting or former senior Taiwan officials.
Tsai, who left office last year, will leave for Berlin on Saturday and speak on Monday at the Berlin Freedom Conference, her office said.
“Former President Tsai hopes this trip will help deepen cooperation and exchanges between Taiwan and Germany, as well as with like-minded democratic countries in Europe,” it said in a statement.
TRIPS TO EUROPE AMID TOUGH CHINA TIES
A German foreign ministry spokesperson said on Wednesday that Tsai was coming to Germany at the invitation of a civil society group and not in any official capacity.
“This is not an official visit. It is a private trip by a private individual. Meetings with members of the federal government are not planned,” said the spokesperson at a regular government press conference in Berlin.
China cut off a regular dialogue mechanism with Taiwan after Tsai took office in 2012 and has a particular dislike of her successor Lai Ching-te, whom it calls a “separatist”. Both are members of Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party.
China’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tsai’s trip.
On Monday, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his German counterpart Johann Wadephul that Berlin should oppose “Taiwan independence”. Last month, Wadephul postponed his first trip to Beijing.
EUROPE TASK FORCE
In September, Taiwan Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung made two trips to Europe, visiting countries including Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland and Italy.
Speaking to reporters in Taipei earlier on Wednesday, Lin said he went to Europe to strengthen relations, adding that his ministry had set up a “Europe task force”.
Tsai, a fluent English speaker who remains an influential political figure in Taiwan, has already visited other European countries since stepping down, including Britain and France.
Last year before Tsai headed to Europe on a similar visit, Taiwan’s presidential office said she had Lai’s full support to promote the island’s relations with the continent.
China says Taiwan is one of its provinces with no right to the trappings of a state, a position Taipei’s government strongly rejects.
(Reporting by Yimou Lee, Markus Wacket and Ben Blanchard; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Alex Richardson)