Han Kuo-yu receives a delegation from the Australian Parliament and emphasizes Taiwan’s industrial advantages and democratic values

Legislative President Han Kuo-yu said when receiving a visiting delegation from the Australian Parliament today (24th) that although Taiwan has a small geographical area, it is a global leader in industries such as wafer foundry, semiconductor and AI, and it also has a mature democratic system and enthusiastic people; in the face of challenges in the international environment, friendship from all over the world is crucial to Taiwan.

Accompanied by Kuomintang legislator Chen Yongkang, Democratic Progressive Party legislator Zhang Yalin and others, Han Guoyu received a visiting delegation led by Deputy Speaker of the Australian Senate Slade Brockman this afternoon. Director-General Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Zhen Guoqing and A/g Representative Daniel Stuart of the Australian Office also attended the meeting.

Han Guoyu first welcomed the delegation led by Berkman to visit Taiwan and introduced one by one the cross-party legislators attending today. He explained to the visiting delegation the differences between the parliaments of Taiwan and Macao and the operating model of my country's Legislative Yuan. He pointed out that the Legislative Yuan is composed of 113 legislators and is responsible for important responsibilities such as reviewing the national budget and formulating laws.

Han Hanyu further thanked Australian members of Congress for their firm support for Taiwan, and specifically mentioned Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's recent speech on Taiwan's participation during the Pacific Islands Forum summit. He said that in the face of international environmental challenges, warm friendship from all over the world is crucial to Taiwan.

Han Guoyu said that although Taiwan is small in geographical territory, its contribution to the world is huge. Taiwan is a global leader in fields such as wafer foundry, semiconductors, and AI industries. In addition, Taiwan also has many "hidden champions" with outstanding performance in textiles, medical care, chemicals, kitchenware, bicycles, and consumer products, demonstrating strong industrial competitiveness. Han bluntly said that the most valuable thing about Taiwan is its mature democratic system and the enthusiasm of its people. He hoped that the visiting delegation could fully experience and understand Taiwan through this trip.

Berkman thanked Han Guoyu for his warm reception and said that this was his second visit to Taiwan, and it was like returning to a familiar place to visit old friends. He then introduced fellow members of the delegation, emphasizing that the visiting delegation included cross-party senators and representatives, which was enough to represent the diverse voices of the Australian Parliament; Australia was the second most popular choice for Taiwanese students to study abroad, and the two sides were highly complementary in economic and trade development. He looked forward to continuing to deepen bilateral cooperation in the fields of energy, high technology, food and critical minerals in the future.

During bilateral exchanges, Chen Yongkang welcomed the visit of Australian cross-party members of Congress and expressed that Taiwan and Australia can continue to cooperate in the political and economic fields. He also pointed out that Australia is an important educational partner of Taiwan and looks forward to closer academic and talent exchanges between the two sides in the future.

Zhang Yalin shared her experience in going to Australia this year to investigate policies prohibiting minors from using social media. She also thanked Australian members of Congress for speaking out for Taiwan on international occasions, which helped enhance Taiwan's international participation and visibility.

The two sides also exchanged extensive views on topics such as mining, agriculture, talent, energy, tourism exchanges, Taiwan's digital resilience development, freedom of speech, the opening of additional direct flights between Taiwan and Macao, and the operating model of the Legislative Yuan. The meeting lasted about 45 minutes, and the two sides finally exchanged souvenirs and concluded the meeting.