Taiwan has a ‘crescent of defence’ in Japan, South Korea and the Philippines, parliament speaker says

You Si-kun, the speaker of Taiwan’s parliament, told a US think tank that China’s Communist Party ‘wants to see the East rise and the West to decline’

He praised Tokyo, Seoul and Manila for joining the self-ruled island and Washington in helping to counter Beijing’s regional – and global – ambitions

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Members of Taiwan’s military reserve force pictured in formation during a training exercise last week. Ensuring the self-ruled island’s security “is to ensure the global public interest”, the speaker of its parliament said. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 11:31am, 17 May 2023Updated: 11:48am, 17 May 2023

The speaker of Taiwan’s parliament has praised Japan, South Korea and the Philippines for helping to create a “crescent of defence” with the self-ruled island and the United States against Beijing’s ambitions in the Asia-Pacific.

Speaking in Washington, You Si-kun told the Hudson Institute think tank that China’s ruling Communist Party and leader Xi Jinping saw Taiwan as just a “stepping stone” to global hegemony.

“The CCP wants to see the East rise and the West to decline,” You said on Tuesday, using an abbreviation for the Communist Party. “We can say that protecting Taiwan equates to defending both Europe and the United States.”

The parliament speaker belongs to Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party, but does not speak for President Tsai Ing-wen.

You Si-kun (centre) pictured last month as he greets Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei in Taipei during a visit to Taiwan’s parliament Photo: AP

He praised Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol for calling Taiwan a global issue and opposing a change to the status quo by force. He said this had “offset” remarks by French President Emmanuel Macron that a conflict in the Taiwan Strait had nothing to do with Europe.