Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 29 April 2025
191. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if his attention has been drawn to large-scale military drills around Taiwan carried out by the Chinese military on 1 April; if he will condemn this act of aggression; the actions he will take to engage with his EU counterparts on a response to this; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18646/25]
View answerOfficials in my Department follow developments in the Taiwan Strait closely. Together with our EU partners, Ireland adheres to a One China Policy. This means we recognise the People’s Republic of China as the legal representative of China, and we do not have diplomatic relations with Taiwan. However, this does not preclude the development of economic, cultural and people-to-people connections with Taiwan, nor the meaningful participation of Taiwan in relevant multilateral fora.
The Government has been clear that any attempt to change the status quo by force would not be acceptable, and we continue to encourage restraint in this regard. Any escalation or confrontation in the Strait is deeply worrying, and has the potential to impact regional and global security, as well as the free flow of trade.
In contacts with China, Ireland regularly underlines the importance of the maintenance of stability in the Strait and strong channels of communications to this end. Most recently, I emphasised these points when I discussed Taiwan with Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Dublin in February.
The EU's position on this issue has been made absolutely clear at the highest level. The European Council publicly underlined the EU's opposition to unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion in June 2023. Our Chinese counterparts are very well aware of this position.
