The US' top representative in Taiwan yesterday echoed calls by President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) for a restart of cross-strait dialogue, without the political conditions that would force Taiwan to accept the "one China" policy.
Raymond Burghardt, director of the semi-official American Institute in Taiwan, recommended a return to an understanding reached between the two sides in 1992 whereby political issues -- including "one China" -- would be shelved.
"[In 1992] the negotiators decided to put aside the intractable political issues concerning sovereignty and the definition of `one China' in order to make progress on practical issues," said Burghardt, who was speaking at a luncheon held by the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei. "That still seems like a wise formula to resume dialogue."
PHOTO: CHEN CHENG-CHANG, TAIPEI TIMES
Chen has maintained that the "1992 consensus" entailed simply an understanding to hold discussions free of political preconditions and that there was no consensus on "one China."
Burghardt agreed.
Delivering what he termed a "completely personal analysis of what happened," Burghardt said that "the phrase `the 1992 consensus' [with each side having its own interpretation of `one China'] which was used by the Kuomintang government to some extent is confusing and misleading. I would say there wasn't a consensus, there was an agreement.
"That's what happened. Nothing more or nothing less," he said.
An exchange of faxes between the two sides at that time detailing their respective positions, in which there was "some language that overlapped and some language that differed," was determined by Taiwan and China to have constituted an agreement to hold talks, Burghardt said.
Andrew Yang (
Yang said that, "Instead of both sides discussing this issue or trying to clarify ... `one China,' Chen is instead offering Beijing improved economic measures that will open the door to greater cross-strait trade and interaction."
Chen has come under mounting pressure from opposition politicians and the business community to accept the "1992 consensus" as if it were an implicit understanding that both sides recognized "one China."
But while offering to discuss "one China" in cross-strait talks, Chen refuses to agree to accept the concept as a condition to negotiations.
Observers have likened Beijing's insistence on acceptance of "one China" as a trap, severely curtailing Taiwan's room to negotiate.
"Beijing wants to use their version of the 1992 understanding to trap Taiwan," Yang said.
Acceptance of any version of "one China" would give the impression Taiwan had caved in to Beijing, he said.
In addition to the semantic struggle over the conditions for talks, chances for cross-strait dialogue will likely be hampered by Beijing's change in leadership which will begin in earnest next year, Burghardt said.
"The leadership transition in Beijing is only going to make it harder than usual for the leaders there to show any flexibility. I think it's very unlikely there are going to be cross-strait talks before Taiwan's election in December," he said.
Burghardt, who has served as director of the AIT since August 1999, has been tapped to serve as the next US ambassador to Vietnam. His appointment is still awaiting confirmation by the Senate, he said.
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
BULLY TACTICS: Beijing has continued its incursions into Taiwan’s airspace even as Xi Jinping talked about Taiwan being part of the Chinese family and nation China should stop its coercion of Taiwan and respect mainstream public opinion in Taiwan about sovereignty if its expression of goodwill is genuine, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday. Ministry spokesman Jeff Liu (劉永健) made the comment in response to media queries about a meeting between former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) the previous day. Ma voiced support for the so-called “1992 consensus,” while Xi said that although the two sides of the Taiwan Strait have “different systems,” this does not change the fact that they are “part of the same country,” and that “external
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source