Biden Invites Taiwan to Democracy Summit Alongside 110 Countries

Since taking office, the US president has placed the fight between democracies and 'autocratic governments' at the heart of his foreign policy Brendan Smialowski AFP/File
Since taking office, the US president has placed the fight between democracies and 'autocratic governments' at the heart of his foreign policy Brendan Smialowski AFP/File
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Biden Invites Taiwan to Democracy Summit Alongside 110 Countries

Since taking office, the US president has placed the fight between democracies and 'autocratic governments' at the heart of his foreign policy Brendan Smialowski AFP/File
Since taking office, the US president has placed the fight between democracies and 'autocratic governments' at the heart of his foreign policy Brendan Smialowski AFP/File

Joe Biden has invited Taiwan to a virtual summit on democracy alongside more than 100 countries -- a move bound to anger China, which is not on the list.

The conference was a campaign pledge by the US president, who has placed the struggle between democracies and "autocratic governments" at the heart of his foreign policy.

The "Summit for Democracy" will take place online on December 9 and 10 ahead of an in-person meeting at its second edition next year.

The meeting was long advertised, but the guest list -- published Tuesday on the State Department's website -- will be closely scrutinized.

Unsurprisingly, America's main rivals China and Russia are not on it.

But the United States did invite Taiwan, which it does not recognize as an independent country but holds up as a model democracy.

China baulks at any use of the word "Taiwan" that lends a sense of international legitimacy to the democratic self-ruled island, which Beijing claims as part of its territory and has vowed to one day seize -- by force if needed.

The US move is guaranteed to further inflame tensions between the two superpowers.

"I agree Taiwan more than qualifies- but it does seem to be (the) only democratic govt invited that the US govt does not officially recognize. So its inclusion is a big deal," tweeted Julian Ku, a Hofstra University law professor whose specialties include China.

India, often called "the world's biggest democracy," will be present despite increasing criticism from human rights defenders over democratic backsliding under Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

So too will Pakistan, despite its checkered relationship with Washington.

- Democracy in decline -
Turkey, a NATO ally of the United States whose President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was dubbed an "autocrat" by Biden, did not make the list.

In the Middle East, only Israel and Iraq were invited. The traditional Arab allies of the US are all absent.

Biden also invited Brazil, which is led by controversial far-right President Jair Bolsonaro.

In Europe, Poland is represented, despite recurring tensions with Brussels over respect for the rule of law, but Hungary's far-right Prime Minister Viktor Orban is not.

On the African side, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria and Niger are invited.

"For this kick-off Summit... there's a case for getting a broad set of actors into the room: it provides for a better exchange of ideas than setting a perfect bar for qualification," Laleh Ispahani of the Open Society Foundations told AFP.

Rather than using the summit as an anti-China meeting, Ispahani urged Biden to address "the serious decline of democracy around the world - including relatively robust models like the US."

This summit is being organized as democracy has suffered setbacks in countries where the US had placed great hopes.

Sudan and Myanmar have experienced military coups, Ethiopia is in the midst of a conflict that could lead to its "implosion," according to US diplomats, and the Taliban took power in Afghanistan following the withdrawal of US troops after two decades.



Iran Says Continuing Uranium Enrichment on Its Soil 'Red Line'

People walk at the Grand Bazaar in Tehran on June 3, 2025. (AFP)
People walk at the Grand Bazaar in Tehran on June 3, 2025. (AFP)
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Iran Says Continuing Uranium Enrichment on Its Soil 'Red Line'

People walk at the Grand Bazaar in Tehran on June 3, 2025. (AFP)
People walk at the Grand Bazaar in Tehran on June 3, 2025. (AFP)

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tuesday that Iran's right to enrich uranium on its soil was a "red line" after the United States submitted its proposal for a new nuclear deal.

"Continuing enrichment on Iranian soil is our red line," Araghchi said while on a visit to Lebanon, adding that his country will respond to the proposal in the coming days based on Iran's "principled positions and the interests of the Iranian people".

US President Donald Trump on Monday reiterated that Iran will not be allowed any enrichment of uranium under a potential deal with Washington.

Araghchi said the US proposal, submitted through mediator Oman, has "many ambiguities and questions".

On Saturday, Iran said it received "elements" of a US proposal for a nuclear deal following five rounds of talks that started in April and were mediated by Oman.

Uranium enrichment has remained a key point of contention between Washington and Tehran in the talks to seal a nuclear deal, with Iran defending what it says is its right to pursue a peaceful nuclear energy program and the US calling it a "red line".

"We will not ask anyone for permission to continue enriching uranium in Iran. However, we are ready to take steps... to ensure that this enrichment will not lead to the production of nuclear weapons," Araghchi said.

Araghchi was visiting Beirut following a stop in Cairo on Monday, where he met with Rafael Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Grossi on Monday called for more transparency from Iran following a leaked report that showed Tehran had increased production of highly enriched uranium.

The IAEA report showed that Iran has ramped up production of uranium enriched up to 60 percent purity -- close to the roughly 90 percent level needed for atomic weapons.

Western countries, including the United States, have long accused Iran of seeking to acquire nuclear weapons, while Iran insists its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.