On 24 July, President Tsai Ing-wen opened the Ketagalan Forum: 2018 Asia-Pacific Security Dialogue in Taipei City. In her opening speech, the President vowed to advance peace, stability and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific while defending rules-based international order. President Tsai acknowledged that the economic, military and political dynamics in the Asia-Pacific have evolved rapidly over the past year. This has created new opportunities and brought challenges undermining the shared democratic values of countries in the region and global security, she added. President Tsai also stated that the government is continuing efforts to expand its cooperation with like-minded countries, as evidenced by the US’s recent decision to green-light marketing licenses for firms that can assist Taiwan in building its own submarines. She raised the success of the New Southbound Policy (NSP) in recruiting the region’s best and brightest to Taiwanese universities as another example of Taiwan’s enhancing cooperation with other like-minded nations.
The one-day forum was organised by the Taipei-based non-profit think tank, Prospect Foundation, and attracted around 20 top officials, academics and experts to discuss issues related to the Korean Peninsula and challenges posed to democracies by China’s sharp power. The event also featured a keynote speech delivered by former US Secretary of Defense Ash Carter as well as a special roundtable on the integration of the NSP and the US Indo-Pacific strategy.
