President thanks European Parliament for support

Taipei, Sept. 13 (CNA) President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) expressed her appreciation Wednesday to the European Parliament for passing a report that calls for an end to China's military provocation of Taiwan.

"We welcome the passage of the new EU-China relations report by Europarl ... grateful to EU parliament for shining light on such an important issue," Tsai wrote in a Twitter post.

In a statement released Thursday, the Presidential Office said that as a member of the international democratic community, Taiwan is willing to continue contributing to the maintenance of regional security and stability, working closely with like-minded countries to fulfill its international responsibilities.

"Facing multiple challenges from China, we will make the best of our efforts to protect our people's freedom, democracy and well-being from being undermined," it added.

In the report on the state of EU-China relations adopted Wednesday, the European Parliament (EP) calls for the European Union and its member states to do their utmost to urge Beijing to refrain from further military provocation towards Taiwan and endangering peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

The EP emphasizes that all cross-strait disputes should be settled by peaceful means on the basis of international law and expresses its concern about a unilateral decision by China to start using new flight routes over the Taiwan Strait.

It also encourages the resumption of official dialogue between Beijing and Taipei and reiterates its consistent support for Taiwan's meaningful participation in international organizations such as the World Health Organization and the International Civil Aviation Organization, saying that Taiwan's continued exclusion from these organization is not in line with the EU's interests.