IPAC adopts declaration on Taiwan Strait status quo to safeguard peace

London, Nov. 13 (CNA) The Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) adopted a declaration at its annual summit in Brussels last week, reaffirming that maintaining the status quo in the Taiwan Strait is vital to preserving peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region.

During the summit, IPAC members also said that actions perceived as undermining the cross-strait status quo are not limited to military aggression.

The members agreed on three other scenarios that would be deemed violations of the status quo -- obstructing Taiwan's self-governance or its ability to secure its borders, economy, and society; preventing Taiwan or other states from engaging in substantive international relations; and imposing a political settlement not agreed to by Taiwan's citizens or elected representatives.

"Activity from Beijing contravening these principles should be seen as a violation of the Status Quo, and trigger a proportionate international response," the declaration states.

Democracies should urgently agree on a common strategy to recognize, clarify, and defend the status quo, deterring escalation in the Taiwan Strait, while signaling to Beijing that any escalation would carry significant political and economic costs, IPAC says in the declaration, which also calls for unhindered maritime traffic through the Taiwan Strait.

The respective governments in the IPAC member states should "continue to resist Beijing's distortion of international law regarding Taiwan, especially United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758, and clarify that the prohibition of the use of force as set out in the UN Charter applies to Taiwan," the declaration states.

The declaration was adopted at the fifth annual IPAC summit, which was held Nov. 7-8 at the European Parliament in Brussels and attended by cross-party lawmakers from 28 countries.

Taiwan Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) also attended the summit and delivered an address, marking the first time that a sitting Taiwanese vice president had visited a non-allied country and spoken in the European Parliament.

IPAC is a global alliance of lawmakers from various countries and political parties, seeking to reform their governments' policies on China.