Beijing has no right to interfere in vice president's visit to Italy: MOFA

Taipei, Sept. 11 (CNA) Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) pushed back Friday against Beijing's criticism of Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim's (蕭美琴) ongoing visit to Italy, saying China has no right to interfere in the trip.

China has no right to dictate Hsiao's participation in events she was invited to by the European Parliament, MOFA spokesperson Hsiao Kuangwei (蕭光偉) told CNA.

The spokesperson made the comments after Beijing criticized the vice president's unannounced trip to the Italian island of Ventotene to attend the Second Ventotene European Conference for Freedom and Democracy.

MOFA confirmed the visit early Friday after European Parliament Vice President Pina Picierno, the event's primary organizer, announced late Thursday that Hsiao had arrived in Italy for the conference, which runs from Thursday to Saturday.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning (毛寧) said earlier Friday that Beijing had lodged solemn representations with Italy and the European Union over the visit.

China consistently opposes any form of official contact between Taiwan and countries that have diplomatic relations with China, Mao said, calling Beijing's "one China" principle the political foundation of China-Italy and China-EU relations.

Taiwan's Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) accompanied Hsiao on the trip, according to MOFA, which declined to disclose further details of their itinerary.

Meanwhile, Luke de Pulford, executive director of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC), an international cross-party alliance of parliamentarians, voiced support for Hsiao's participation in the event in comments to CNA.

"The only response to Beijing's attempt to shrink the world for Taiwanese people is to show that Taiwan is welcome," de Pulford said.

This is "not simply because it is in our national interest to do so, but because it is wholly wrong to allow a democracy like Taiwan to be persecuted and outcast on the international stage," he added.