Taiwan Calls for Defence Official to Be Stationed in De Facto Diplomatic Mission

Taiwan's Foreign Affairs Minister Joseph Wu speaks during an interview in Taipei, Taiwan on Nov. 6, 2019. Fabian Hamacher/Reuters

The Taiwanese foreign minister has called for an exchange of defence attaches to be stationed at their respective diplomatic missions.

“I think it is very important when the Australian government is paying so much more attention to the regional security issues for the two countries to be able to share their observations, their assessment of the situation,” Wu told The Australian newspaper on June 27.

“I know the Australian office over here has started speaking with our security agencies, and that kind of development is very important.

“It shows that the Australian government has attached great importance to speaking with our security officials … to understand our perspectives on how to prevent the worst from happening. So this is a great step forward.”

The Taiwanese government said it would also look to station a military officer at Taipei’s de facto embassy in Canberra.

“I think it is very important for us to have somebody who can speak on behalf of the security agencies over here, especially (Taiwan’s) Ministry of National Defence, so that we can have a systematic or institutionalised way of engaging with each other and for information sharing, assessment sharing, things like that,” Wu said.

“But again, you know, it is up to ... the Australian government.”

The move would be similar to those taken by Japan, Singapore, and the United States in Taiwan.

Australia has no formal embassy in Taiwan due to its One China foreign policy stance, which officially recognises Beijing but allows countries to hold informal ties with Taiwan.

The call from Taipei comes as the Taiwanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs told the Taipei Times on June 27 that the Australian government, through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, appointed a director of strategic affairs to its de facto embassy in 2022, following an increased threat from Beijing.

The ministry said the director had been in close contact with the Taiwanese Ministry of National Defense and other security agencies.

The Epoch Times has reached out to Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to confirm the appointment.

Taiwan Appreciative of Albanese Government: Foreign Minister

The foreign minister also stressed that Taiwan was delighted with the current Australian government’s support toward Taiwan.

“Australia always stresses the importance of regional peace and stability, and also opposes the unilateral change of the status quo and, at the same time, supports Taiwan’s international participation,” Wu said.

“So the Australian government under the leadership of Prime Minister Albanese, his policies towards Taiwan, have been appreciated by the Taiwanese people.”

The comments from the foreign minister come as a new study revealed that in the event of a military conflict between Beijing and Washington over Taiwan, just over half of Australians would be against physically entering the contest on Taiwanese soil.

However, Australians were keen to still support Taiwan, with 80 percent saying they would accept Taiwanese refugees into Australia, 76 percent supporting the imposition of economic and diplomatic sanctions on Beijing, 64 percent supporting the supply of military aid, and another 61 percent supporting the use of the Australian Navy to prevent China blockading the region around Taiwan.

The poll, completed by Sydney-based Lowy Institute, also showed that Australians still see Beijing as a security threat, with a majority of the country believing it is “very” or “somewhat” likely that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) will become a military threat to the country within the next 20 years.

“Australians don’t want to see a conflict in our region and are cautious about the country’s involvement if a war did break out,” said Ryan Neelam, the director of the Lowy Institute’s Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Program.

“But they are also prepared to stand by democracies that come under threat.”