Democracies must unite to resist the "
rise of autocracies
", warned on Wednesday a former NATO chief visiting Taiwan, an island which, according to him, must be able to decide its own future.
"
We must strengthen our fight against, or our attempts to counter, the rise of autocracies
", declared Anders Fogh Rasmussen, former Danish Prime Minister and ex-Secretary General of NATO, during a meeting with the Taiwanese President, Tsai Ing-wen.
According to him, the alliance of democracies is essential in this perspective, at a time when the island of Taiwan lives under the constant threat of an invasion from Beijing, which considers it as part of its territory to be reconquered one day, by force if necessary.
Such fears have been heightened since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has captured the world's attention.
Read alsoThe Minister of Foreign Affairs of Taiwan in Figaro: “The Taiwanese are ready to fight for their freedom”
Taiwan has the "
right to exist in freedom and peace
" and to decide its own future, said Anders Fogh Rasmussen.
But Chinese President Xi Jinping has made clear that the issue of Taiwan's "
reunification
" cannot be passed on to future generations.
Relations between Beijing and Taipei, already tense, deteriorated sharply in 2022, as China increased military maneuvers around Taiwan.
In her traditional New Year's address on Sunday, Tsai said China's military activities around Taiwan were "
of no help
" to maintaining relations between the two sides.
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