British MP Tom Tugendhat visits Taiwan, will meet with officials

Taipei, Jan. 13 (CNA) United Kingdom parliamentarian Tom Tugendhat arrived in Taiwan Sunday on a four-day visit during which he will meet with Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) and other senior government officials, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said Monday.

Tugendhat, a member of the U.K. Conservative Party and a former minister of state, will also meet with former President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), MOFA said in a press release.

The foreign ministry did not give any details of Tugendhat's scheduled meeting with Vice President Hsiao or the other high-level government officials, saying only that they will include Deputy Foreign Minister François Wu (吳志中) and Deputy Legislative Speaker Johnny Chiang (江啟臣).

During the four-day visit, Tugendhat will also be the guest of honor at two banquets, hosted by Wu and National Security Council Secretary-General Joseph Wu (吳釗燮), respectively, according to MOFA.

The parliamentarian, who represents the town of Tonebridge in Kent, has also been invited to give a closed-door speech at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, the foreign ministry said. He is expected to speak about Taiwan's frontline efforts in the defense of freedom, according to MOFA.

Tugendhat previously served in the U.K. Cabinet as minister of state for security from September 2022 to July 2024. Prior to that, he was chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, from 2017 to 2022.

While on the committee, he sent open letters to the director-general of the World Health Organization and to the U.K. secretary of state for health and social care, calling for Taiwan's participation in the World Health Assembly, MOFA said.

On his current visit to Taiwan, which is his first, Tugendhat is being accompanied by his Senior Parliamentary Assistant Lottie Dane.