President: The ocean has no borders, and Taiwan's determination to engage with the world will not change

President Lai Ching-te met with a delegation from the "2026 Taiwan International Ocean Forum" on Thursday, emphasizing that the ocean has no borders, maritime governance should not be restricted by political factors, and Taiwan's determination to engage with the world will not change. Taiwan will continue to contribute its efforts to promote cooperation in maritime affairs.

President Lai met with the delegation from the "2026 Taiwan International Ocean Forum" at the Presidential Office in the afternoon, including Jan Paternotte, co-chair of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) from the Netherlands.

In his speech, President Lai mentioned that the 2026 Taiwan International Ocean Forum will be held in the next two days and expressed his pleasure in welcoming the guests at the Presidential Office and thanked them for traveling from afar to exchange views on maritime issues.

President Lai stated that maritime security in the Indo-Pacific region is facing unprecedented challenges, including increasingly frequent gray-zone harassment, escalating maritime law enforcement conflicts, and risks such as damage to critical infrastructure like undersea cables. This indicates that maritime security is no longer just an issue for coastal nations but a crucial matter concerning global peace and prosperity.

The President expressed Taiwan's sincere gratitude for the G7's statement in June, which reiterated the importance of establishing a free and open Indo-Pacific region based on the rule of law and opposed any unilateral change to the status quo in the East China Sea, South China Sea, and Taiwan Strait by force or coercion. To maintain regional peace and stability, as reflected in this year's forum theme of "Ocean Resilience," Taiwan firmly believes that deepening international cooperation and collectively enhancing resilience to address new types of threats is a direction that all countries must work together towards.

President Lai said that Taiwan will also actively strengthen its response measures. In June, Taiwan conducted a tabletop exercise at the Presidential Office's "National Defense Mobilization Committee" concerning gray-zone harassment and high-intensity maritime coercion, verifying the emergency response capabilities of the government and the public. In the future, Taiwan will continue to share its experiences with other countries and jointly establish closer and more efficient cooperation mechanisms in areas such as maritime law enforcement, maritime search and rescue, and the protection of undersea infrastructure.

Additionally, in June, China pressured the Kenyan government to obstruct Taiwan's participation in this year's "11th Our Ocean Conference" (OOC 11).

President Lai also mentioned on Thursday that Taiwan is an indispensable partner in promoting global ocean sustainability. He stated that due to unreasonable political interference, Taiwan was unable to participate in the "Our Ocean Conference," but he emphasized that the ocean has no borders, maritime governance should not be restricted by political factors, and Taiwan's determination to engage with the world will not change. Taiwan will continue to contribute its efforts to promote cooperation in maritime affairs.

He said that the Taiwan International Ocean Forum is an important link between Taiwan and the world. This year, experts from 15 countries and over a hundred participants from industry, government, academia, and research, as well as inter-parliamentary members, are attending. The presence of the delegation is a firm show of support for Taiwan, for which he expressed his most sincere gratitude once again. He expressed his hope that everyone will continue to walk side-by-side to jointly safeguard a free, open, and secure ocean, and to promote world peace, prosperity, and development.

Paternotte, who spoke subsequently, stated that this year, the world recognizes that freedom of navigation is not only a legal right enjoyed by nations for centuries but also key to maintaining global prosperity and energy security. Defending Taiwan's status quo, security, and freedom of navigation in the Taiwan Strait is a top priority for IPAC.

Paternotte said he is well aware that standing in this building, the Presidential Office, comes at a cost for some of his colleagues. In 2021, China-linked hacker groups targeted the emails of every EU IPAC member, and Chinese diplomats have pressured parliamentarians not to attend IPAC summits. Delegations visiting Taiwan have also faced protests, threats, and sanctions, "but we still came, and that's the key."

Paternotte stated that President Lai has said Taiwan stands on the front line of the democratic world and is determined to defend democracy. President Lai has also spoken about partners with shared commitments jointly holding up a "democratic umbrella." "We are here because we stand with you and the people of Taiwan under that umbrella." (Edited by: Lin Hsing-meng) 1150707

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