Vice President Hsiao: Collaborating with France to Deepen Exchanges in AI, Space Technology, and Culture

Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim stated today while receiving a visiting delegation from the French National Assembly that Taiwan will continue to deepen cooperation with France and other democratic partners in Europe to jointly maintain regional peace and stability and develop reliable supply chains. She thanked the French parliament for its long-standing support for Taiwan's international participation and the development of Taiwan-France relations, expecting further deepening of bilateral cooperation in areas such as artificial intelligence (AI), space technology, and cultural exchanges in the future.

The Presidential Office issued a press release in the evening indicating that the Vice President received the "delegation led by Estelle Youssouffa, Secretary of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the French National Assembly" in the morning. In her remarks, the Vice President first welcomed the visiting delegation on behalf of President Lai Ching-te, the Taiwanese government, and its people. She expressed that the delegation's leader, Estelle Youssouffa, has long cared about Taiwan and harbors a deep friendship for it, adding that she was very pleased to welcome her leading a delegation to visit Taiwan again.

The Vice President also expressed her gratitude to the French National Assembly for its various efforts to deepen Taiwan-France relations in recent years, including the warm reception received by the cross-party Legislative Yuan delegation led by Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu during their recent visit to France.

The Vice President pointed out that France has passed several bills in recent years, including the "Seven-Year Military Programming Law" approved by the National Assembly and the Senate, which specifically lists freedom of navigation in the Taiwan Strait as an important goal that France should jointly maintain with global stakeholders. Furthermore, on issues such as supporting Taiwan's international participation and promoting the continued deepening of bilateral relations, the French National Assembly has also given substantial support, for which the Vice President expressed her sincere appreciation.

Touching on the international situation, the Vice President stated that global geopolitical dynamics have changed rapidly in recent years, and conflicts in both Europe and the Middle East have brought significant impacts to countries around the world. Taiwan is working hard to shoulder the responsibility of maintaining regional peace and stability and expects continued support from the international community.

Additionally, the Vice President mentioned that in the economic realm, Taiwan faces reciprocal tariffs from the US, as well as changes driven by global AI and other industrial developments. Despite the rapidly changing international situation, Taiwan's economic growth performance in the first quarter of this year remains quite outstanding.

The Vice President stated that in addition to maintaining close cooperation with like-minded countries such as the United States and Japan, Taiwan is also actively promoting and deepening exchange and cooperation with European partners, and further developing reliable supply chain partnerships with friends who similarly support democracy, freedom, and shared values. In recent years, Taiwan and France have made excellent progress in space, artificial intelligence, and other technological development fields, and it is expected that bilateral cooperation in related areas can continue to deepen in the future.

Regarding cultural exchanges, the Vice President mentioned that during the Olympics hosted by France in 2024, Taiwan formed a massive cultural delegation to travel to France for international cultural exchanges. Recently, the French Lifestyle Festival organized in collaboration between Franck Paris, Director of the French Office in Taipei, and the Kaohsiung City Government also attracted the participation of many Taiwanese people. She pointed out that cultural exchange is an area highly valued by both governments and their peoples, expressing hopes for continued cooperation in relevant fields in the future.