Taiwan's deputy foreign minister made 'secret trip' to Tel Aviv: Report

Taiwan's deputy foreign minister has made an unpublicized visit to Israeli-occupied territories recently, sources familiar with the trip said, at a time when the self-ruling island is looking to the Zionist entity for increased military cooperation.

Individuals knowledgeable about the journey on Thursday confirmed that Francois Wu undertook a previously undisclosed visit to Israeli-occupied territories within recent weeks.

An Israeli official told Israel Hayom that the controversial visit took place but played down its importance.

Wu reportedly met with Knesset members from prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing ruling coalition.

The talks reportedly touched on Taiwan’s new air defense system – the T-Dome – which is inspired by the Israeli Iron Dome. 

This Israeli–Taiwanese cooperation has been greenlit by Washington, according to the reports. 

On October 28, Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te said that Israel serves as a model for the island to strengthen its military power.

“We are hoping to build a more thorough air defense net with a higher interception rate,” an anonymous Taiwanese source said at the time. 

In response to the unveiling of the air defense plans in October, China accused Taiwan of “seeking independence by force,” adding that this would only result in conflict.

Taiwan's air defenses have been mainly based on the US Patriot system, as well as its locally developed Sky Bow missiles.

Intelligence Online reported on October 21 that Taiwan’s deputy defense minister secretly visited Israel to seek help in developing the T-Dome.

The outlet says Israel has been providing military expertise and technology to Taiwan under the guise of civilian programs. 

Tel Aviv is reportedly assisting Taipei with integrating elements of its Green Pine and Arrow systems in order to develop the Tian Gong-4 missile system, which will be part of the T-Dome network. 

The latest clandestine trip transpired as Taipei pursues military collaboration with the occupied regime, despite ongoing Chinese warnings that it would not tolerate Israeli ties with the island, which it considers a renegade province.

Following the latest visit by the Taiwanese diplomat, the Chinese embassy in the Israeli-occupied territories recently warned that “China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China and that Taiwan is an inalienable part of the territory of the People's Republic of China."

China urges the Israeli occupying regime to “faithfully abide by the one-China principle, correct the erroneous actions and stop sending any wrong signals to separatist forces advocating Taiwan independence.”

“The Chinese side firmly objects to any form of official exchanges with the Taiwan authorities, which seriously violate the one-China principle.”

China slams Israel for crossing ‘another red line’ by attacking Iran

China’s UN ambassador Fu Cong has condemned the Israeli regime’s violation of Iran’s sovereignty, security and territorial integrity, urging Tel Aviv to put an immediate halt to its illegal aggression against Iran.

Taiwan wants to deepen its ties with Israel and its administration has refrained from condemning the Tel Aviv regime's crimes in the besieged Gaza Strip.

Taiwan's foreign minister Lin Chia-Lung last month said that “Palestine is very bad to Taiwan” because it aligns with Beijing’s “One-China” principle, which states that there is only one China, and that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China. Taiwan’s official name is the Republic of China. 

The developments come as China in recent months repeatedly condemned the killing of civilians following the Israeli onslaught in Gaza and rapped Israel’s actions for being “beyond the scope of self-defense.”

Tel Aviv and its US-led Western allies labeled the Israeli aggression on Gaza that killed thousands of Palestinian children and women as an act of self-defense.

China has repeatedly reaffirmed its support for the Palestinian people against the apartheid Israeli regime, blasting the Tel Aviv regime for settler colonialism in the occupied territories. 

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