(Central News Agency, Taipei, 25th Comprehensive Foreign News Report) A letter written by He Guisen, a registrant on the 24th issue of the website “The China Project” (The China Project), which focuses on reporting on China, stated that Lieutenant General Littiman, the principal of the NATO Defense Academy, visited Taiwan secretly at the end of March.
The previously unreported trip, which was confirmed by the NATO Defense College, was just one of a series of regional and global operations aimed at limiting China’s future military options, Chris Horton said in a letter.
He Guisen said that at the end of March, when the global media focused on President Tsai Ing-wen’s upcoming meeting with the Speaker of the US House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, Lieutenant General Olivier Rittimann, president of the NATO Defense Academy, quietly visited Taiwan.
Lieutenant General Littiman met with relevant personnel of the National Defense University. The NATO Defense Academy is based in Rome and is part of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
The news of Littiman’s visit to Taiwan has not been published in the Taiwanese media, nor has it been published on the website of the National Defense University.
However, when the “China Project” asked about relevant information, the NATO Defense Academy briefly confirmed that Rietman visited Taiwan for academic purposes from March 27 to 31. This is a normal cultural exchange between the NATO Defense Academy and important educational institutions around the world. a part of.
The National Defense University confirmed Rietman’s visit but declined to comment further.
The interaction between NATO and Taiwan is not unprecedented, but the scope of the exchange is still unclear and the two sides are tight-lipped.
He Guisen said in the letter that what is certain at present is that in view of the threat China poses to countries in the Indo-Pacific region, especially Taiwan, NATO has begun to pay more attention to this region.
Asia is no stranger to NATO. NATO has had informal exchanges with Japan since 1979, which were elevated to official exchanges in the early 1990s. NATO began dialogue with South Korea in 2005, and also started exchanges with Australia.
More recently, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg called on South Korea to provide weapons to Ukraine at a forum in Seoul in January.
Of course, these are countries recognized by all NATO members. Taiwan’s diplomatic dilemma complicates the interaction of other countries and international organizations with Taiwan. Nonetheless, NATO and Taiwan are increasingly willing to openly discuss their interactions.
In addition to both parties confirming that Rietman visited Taiwan in March, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense revealed to Reuters reporters in January that Taiwan had sent more than one military officer to the NATO Defense Academy for training in the past.
Meanwhile, an unnamed NATO official stated: “For many years, NATO educational institutions such as the NATO Defense Academy and the NATO School Oberammergau have engaged with players in the Indo-Pacific region, among them Including Taipei.” (Translator: Liu Shuqin/Certified Draft: Xu Chongzhe) 1120525
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