Recognizing a true friend
It was heartening to read that Michael Reilly was recently awarded the Friendship Medal of Diplomacy in recognition of his contribution to the promotion of Taiwan-UK relations (“Diplomat receives medal for Taiwan-UK diplomacy,” Feb. 10, page 3).
The news showcases the innovative practices through which visionary career diplomats can best serve not only their countries, but also the international community.
As a friend of Reilly, the director of the British Trade and Cultural Office (BTCO) from 2006 to 2009, I believe that many people could benefit from a better understand this friendly, inquisitive, humble and globally minded diplomat with a background in Asian culture and international education.
Reilly graduated from the University of Liverpool with a doctorate in economic history, and joined the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1978.
However, he soon left that post for Seoul, where he spent 18 months studying Korean language and literature at Yonsei University. He is thus fluent in Korean and also knowledgeable about Asian history and politics. Such an intensive program of education enhanced his unique ability to serve not only the Foreign Office in London, but also the global community as a whole.
Prior to coming to Taipei, Reilly headed the ASEAN & Oceania Group in the Foreign Office, followed by a series of outstanding achievement in the field of foreign service, including working for the British embassy in Seoul, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in Paris, the British embassy in Manila and finally as the head of Culture, Scholarships and Sports Department at the Foreign Office.
Reilly has actively helped to develop harmonious relations between the UK and other countries in the Asia-Pacific region. In October 2000, he was appointed by London to come to Taipei as the chief representative of a delegation negotiating with Taiwan on an unprecedented agreement relating to educational and cultural cooperation. During the bilateral talk, he was accompanied by then-BTCO head, David Coates, and Richard Walker of the British Council.
Their counterparts were Taiwanese officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Education.
Thanks to Reilly’s far--reaching vision of future relations between the UK and Taiwan, the Agreement on Educational and Cultural Matters Between the British Trade and Cultural Office in Taipei and the Taipei Representative Office in the United Kingdom was signed in London in early 2001.
This agreement helped -formulate a brand new blueprint to guide bilateral relations. Expanding trade, increases in international education and tourism and, above all, visa-free access to the UK in March 2009 are just a few examples.
Reilly had also been eager to boost educational and cultural links between Taiwan and the UK. Thus, upon his arrival in Taipei as the head of BTCO in 2006, he delivered a thought-provoking lecture at Shih Hsin University on March 15, 2006, entitled “Higher Education in a Global Age — Studying in the UK.”
Reilly is a new pioneer who has meticulously cultivated a brand new version of Taiwan-UK relations for the 21st century. He fully deserves To be recognized as a true friend not only to Taiwan, but to all the citizens of the Asia-Pacific region.
CHEN-CHING LI
Taipei
Congressman Mike Gallagher (R-WI) and Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) led a bipartisan delegation to Taiwan in late February. During their various meetings with Taiwan’s leaders, this delegation never missed an opportunity to emphasize the strength of their cross-party consensus on issues relating to Taiwan and China. Gallagher and Krishnamoorthi are leaders of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party. Their instruction upon taking the reins of the committee was to preserve China issues as a last bastion of bipartisanship in an otherwise deeply divided Washington. They have largely upheld their pledge. But in doing so, they have performed the
It is well known that Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) ambition is to rejuvenate the Chinese nation by unification of Taiwan, either peacefully or by force. The peaceful option has virtually gone out of the window with the last presidential elections in Taiwan. Taiwanese, especially the youth, are resolved not to be part of China. With time, this resolve has grown politically stronger. It leaves China with reunification by force as the default option. Everyone tells me how and when mighty China would invade and overpower tiny Taiwan. However, I have rarely been told that Taiwan could be defended to
It should have been Maestro’s night. It is hard to envision a film more Oscar-friendly than Bradley Cooper’s exploration of the life and loves of famed conductor and composer Leonard Bernstein. It was a prestige biopic, a longtime route to acting trophies and more (see Darkest Hour, Lincoln, and Milk). The film was a music biopic, a subgenre with an even richer history of award-winning films such as Ray, Walk the Line and Bohemian Rhapsody. What is more, it was the passion project of cowriter, producer, director and actor Bradley Cooper. That is the kind of multitasking -for-his-art overachievement that Oscar
Chinese villages are being built in the disputed zone between Bhutan and China. Last month, Chinese settlers, holding photographs of Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), moved into their new homes on land that was not Xi’s to give. These residents are part of the Chinese government’s resettlement program, relocating Tibetan families into the territory China claims. China shares land borders with 15 countries and sea borders with eight, and is involved in many disputes. Land disputes include the ones with Bhutan (Doklam plateau), India (Arunachal Pradesh, Aksai Chin) and Nepal (near Dolakha and Solukhumbu districts). Maritime disputes in the South China