On September 2 at 12:50 p.m. (CET), President Tsai Ing-wen delivered her remarks at the Closing Session of the 26th Forum 2000 annual Conference in Prague "Democracy’s Clear and Present Danger: How Do We Respond?".
President Tsai addressed the challenges of democracy from Taiwan's perspective as the people of Ukraine are defending their country against Vladimir Putin’s authoritarian aggression. “One of the main reasons Taiwanese empathize with Ukraine is that we, too, have to deal with the constant threat of authoritarianism. This threat has been present for decades, and has only intensified in recent years, particularly as democracies and their leaders demonstrated their willingness to visit and work with Taiwan”, President Tsai Ing-wen said.
During her speech, President Tsai emphasized that “neither threats nor coercion will shake Taiwan’s resolve to engage with the world” and highlighted that Taiwan’s determination to combat authoritarian influence is due to the fact that democracy and freedom are a non-negotiable part of who they are.
President Tsai said that collaboration, support and information sharing remain key to democratic resilience and sent a message of hope: “I am also confident that, by standing united, working together, and keeping our belief in the value of democracy, we will always overcome the challenges that we face and achieve our goals.”
Tsai Ing-wen is the first female head of state in Taiwan's history, she was successfully re-elected in the nation’s 15th-term presidential election in 2020.
