Ex-President Tsai meets French senators

Paris, Oct. 16 (CNA) Former President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) met with a group of current and former members of the French Parliament in Paris on Wednesday (local time), as part of a European tour that has drawn protests from Beijing.

Accompanied by a group of French senators led by Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne, Tsai toured the French Senate on Wednesday morning before joining the group for lunch.

The tour made Tsai the first former Taiwanese president to visit the French upper house since direct presidential elections were held in Taiwan in 1996.

Tsai, who stepped down as president in May after serving two four-year terms, currently holds no official positions but remains an influential figure within Taiwanese politics and the ruling Democratic Progressive Party.

Tsai said in a social media post afterward that her visit to France, which was not previously announced, was made at the invitation of Lemoyne.

Tsai, accompanied by National Security Council adviser Alex Huang (黃重諺) and former Economics Minister Wang Mei-hua (王美花), arrived in Paris on Tuesday after wrapping up her visit to the Czech Republic.

Former Deputy Senate President Alain Richard, an outspoken supporter of Taiwan who visited the country four times before leaving the Senate last year, also joined the tour and the ensuing gathering.

Richard told CNA that Tsai's continued activity on the global stage would be "very helpful" for Taiwan, as it allows her greater flexibility to engage in dialogue with leaders from various countries.

Lemoyne, who currently chairs a Taiwan friendship group in the French Senate, said since both France and Taiwan have a stake in the Indo-Pacific region, the two should maintain strong connections rooted in shared values and mutual interests.

Given the complexity of the global geopolitical situation, dialogue and discussions between partners are increasingly important, said Lemoyne, who represents Renaissance, a party founded by French President Emmanuel Macron.

Taiwan's de facto ambassador to France Hao Pei-chih (郝培芝), meanwhile, said Tsai's visit would "bring relations between Taiwan and France to new heights," adding that she looked forward to more breakthroughs in bilateral exchanges.

Hao, who took charge of Taiwan's Representative Office in France in September, also said Tsai's Paris trip had been kept under wraps to avoid "unnecessary disruptions," without elaborating, likely referring to potential interference by the Chinese embassy in Paris.

The Taiwanese representative office serves Taipei's interests in France in the absence of formal diplomatic relations.

Tsai's European tour has drawn criticism from China's foreign ministry, which last week described her as a "Taiwanese independence figure," warning European countries that any support or assistance for Tsai could undermine their relations with Beijing.

Eric Bothorel, a member of the French National Assembly, told CNA that his office had received a call from the Chinese embassy before the lunch with Tsai urging him not to go.

Despite the Chinese request, Bothorel, who previously headed a similar Taiwan friendship group in the French lower house, attended the gathering.

Bothorel said he was a "free" lawmaker who intended to keep that freedom.