Vice President-elect Hsiao Bi-khim (left) and First Vice-President of the European Parliament Othmar Karas pose for a photo during her visit to Europe in March, 2024. Photo courtesy of Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Taipei, May 3 (CNA) Vice President-elect Hsiao Bi-khim's (蕭美琴) visit to Europe in March proceeded smoothly and included transits via Frankfurt, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said Friday, after the German government reportedly restricted her travel in the country.
In a German Marshall Fund (GMF) analysis titled "Watching China in Europe," published Thursday, Noah Barkin, a visiting senior fellow at the Berlin-based Indo-Pacific Program, said Hsiao's request to travel through the southern part of Germany as a private citizen was denied.
At that time, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was scheduled to visit China in April, as indicated by the analysis.
Meanwhile, Jakub Janda, head of the Czechia-based think tank European Values Center for Security Policy, tweeted on X (formerly known as Twitter) on Thursday that Hsiao was "not even allowed to transit by ground transport" in Germany and "never left Dresden airport" during her visit.
According to MOFA, however, Hsiao's visit to the Czech Republic, Belgium, Poland and Lithuania in March was successful and uneventful, and transits were made through Frankfurt for convenience, comfort and security.
The ministry expressed its gratitude for the warm welcome and reception extended to Hsiao by the respective countries during her visit.
Asked if it was true that Taiwan's vice president-elect wanted to visit Germany for personal reasons but did not get a visa, German Foreign Ministry spokesperson Christian Wagner said at a press briefing in Berlin Friday that he was aware of the coverage of Hsiao's visit to Germany and as far as he knew, Hsiao did indeed travel via Frankfurt.
He added that Taiwanese citizens can travel freely to Germany and there is no so-called entry ban.
However, "according to our one-China policy, the federal government's approach is to avoid contact with officials associated with (Taiwan) sovereignty," he said.
Neither MOFA nor Wagner clarified whether Hsiao's travel itinerary included a trip to Dresden or if she was held up at Dresden airport as Janda alleged.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), the world's largest contract chipmaker, is set to build a fab in Dresden with the construction scheduled to start in the fourth quarter of the year.
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