German MPs travel to Taiwan amid rising tensions with China

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A high-ranking parliamentary delegation from Germany said they were heading to Taiwan on Sunday, prior to an expected ministerial visit later this year, steps that could spark tensions with China.

Johannes Vogel of the pro-business Free Democratic Party (FDP) posted on Twitter a picture of him and party colleague Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann on "the plane to Taiwan".

Grüße von @MAStrackZi und mir aus dem Flieger nach Taiwan! pic.twitter.com/y1QMDdpwlN

— Johannes Vogel (@johannesvogel) January 8, 2023

The visit was one of "solidarity" with the self-ruled democracy, which China considers part of its national territory, Strack-Zimmermann, the head of the parliamentary defense committee, told AFP on Thursday.

The trip is expected to be followed by a spring visit from German Education Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger, also of the FDP, sources told AFP.

It would be the first by a member of the German cabinet in 26 years.

Before the trip, Strack-Zimmermann said that the delegation would have meetings with representatives of Taiwan's government and the opposition, as well as business leaders, human rights organizations, and members of the military.

Germany's diplomatic overtures to Taiwan are likely to irritate China.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has made clear that the "reunification" of Taiwan cannot be passed on to future generations.

China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) spokesperson said, on Friday, that the transit of a US destroyer across the Taiwan Strait heightened tensions with the Chinese military closely monitoring ships' activities along the whole route.

This comes shortly after a US Navy warship sailed through the Taiwan Strait. The passage was carried out by the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer Chung-Hoon, according to a US Navy statement, and was described as a “routine activity”.

Simultaneously, a spokesperson for China's Embassy in Washington, Liu Pengyu, said China decisively opposed the move, urging the US to "immediately stop provoking troubles, escalating tensions and undermining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait."

Read: China to take all necessary steps for Taiwan reunification: White Book

Last year, tensions soared between China and Taiwan, reaching their highest in decades, due to a visit by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to the island after Beijing warned both Washington and Taipei against such a trip.

Commenting on the unannounced visit of US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi affirmed that "Taiwan is a part of China. The implementation of national reunification is a general trend and historic imminence."

Beijing also called on Washington to "stop going further down the wrong path of hollowing out and distorting the one-China principle, so as not to cause further damage to China-US relations and peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait."

Since August, China has carried out several large-scale military exercises near Taiwan in response to the visits of high-ranking US officials to the island.

Pelosi's visit also led China to announce ending cooperation with the United States on a number of issues such as climate change, anti-drug efforts, and military talks.

Read: China: US sending 'very wrong, dangerous signals' on Taiwan

In September, US President Joe Biden said US soldiers would defend Taiwan if China "intervened", and Taiwan's Foreign Ministry expressed thanks to Biden for his reaffirming the "US government's rock-solid security commitment to Taiwan."

The escalation in the region saw Taiwan announcing plans on increasing its security budget in light of rising tensions with Beijing, especially due to the latest developments that drove a wider wedge between China and Taipei.

The island will also create a special budget allocated specifically for the acquisition of fighter jets and other aircraft and naval vessels to boost its capabilities in the maritime and aerial arenas.