The Presidential Office and the Cabinet yesterday dismissed suggestions that the nation was considering sending troops to Iraq after two members of the US House of Representatives presented a resolution that would require the US president to ask Taiwan to send marines to the recently invaded country.
"As far as I know, it was just a proposal," Cabinet Spokesman Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) said. "Up until now, the US government has never made such a request nor have we received any message from the US government in this regard."
The main aim of the nation's armed forces is to defend the country, Chen said, and the Cabinet has no plans to elevate its military cooperation with the US.
"As a member of the international community, we've dedicated ourselves to anti-terrorism, post-war reconstruction and humanitarian aid," he said. "I believe the communication channels with the US military have been smooth and interaction frequent, which has had a positive impact on security across the Taiwan Strait and regional stability."
Presidential Office Spokesman James Huang (
Two pro-Taiwan US House members introduced a resolution on Thursday calling for US President George W. Bush to ask Taiwan to deploy marines to Iraq.
Representative Dana Rohrabacher, co-chairman of the Congressional Taiwan Caucus, and Representative Jim Ryun, also a member of the Taiwan Caucus, said in the resolution that Taiwan was studying the feasibility of sending up to 5,000 marines to Iraq to fight alongside US-led forces.
As a fellow democracy, the resolution said, Taiwan shares the US' passion for promoting freedom, democracy and human rights around the world; and its marines have a deserved reputation throughout the Far East for their high level of training and motivation.
Since the US is requesting other countries to send ground forces to Iraq to join international coalition forces in the global war on terrorism, Bush should "request President Chen to deploy Taiwanese marines to Iraq," said the resolution, which has been referred to the House Committee on International Relations for debate.
Ryun, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, also introduced a draft amendment to a national defense authorization act for next year that considerably raises the level of military exchanges between the US and Taiwan.
Taiwan has reportedly offered to donate US$200 million to help with Iraq's post-war reconstruction during the US-led war against Iraq. The US government reportedly turned down the donation for fear of angering China, which sees Taiwan as a breakaway province.
Taiwan has participated twice in US wars overseas since 1949, according to the April issue of the Taiwan military monthly, Defense International. The nation sent interpreters to interrogate Chinese prisoners of war at the end of the Korean War (1950-1953). It also sent special troops to assist US forces during the Vietnam War (1954-1975).
Also See Story:
Editorial: Horse-trading in a hornets' nest
People can preregister to receive their NT$10,000 (US$325) cash distributed from the central government on Nov. 5 after President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday signed the Special Budget for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience, the Executive Yuan told a news conference last night. The special budget, passed by the Legislative Yuan on Friday last week with a cash handout budget of NT$236 billion, was officially submitted to the Executive Yuan and the Presidential Office yesterday afternoon. People can register through the official Web site at https://10000.gov.tw to have the funds deposited into their bank accounts, withdraw the funds at automated teller
PEACE AND STABILITY: Maintaining the cross-strait ‘status quo’ has long been the government’s position, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Taiwan is committed to maintaining the cross-strait “status quo” and seeks no escalation of tensions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday, rebutting a Time magazine opinion piece that described President William Lai (賴清德) as a “reckless leader.” The article, titled “The US Must Beware of Taiwan’s Reckless Leader,” was written by Lyle Goldstein, director of the Asia Program at the Washington-based Defense Priorities think tank. Goldstein wrote that Taiwan is “the world’s most dangerous flashpoint” amid ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He said that the situation in the Taiwan Strait has become less stable
FRESH LOOK: A committee would gather expert and public input on the themes and visual motifs that would appear on the notes, the central bank governor said The central bank has launched a comprehensive redesign of New Taiwan dollar banknotes to enhance anti-counterfeiting measures, improve accessibility and align the bills with global sustainability standards, Governor Yang Chin-long (楊金龍) told a meeting of the legislature’s Finance Committee yesterday. The overhaul would affect all five denominations — NT$100, NT$200, NT$500, NT$1,000 and NT$2,000 notes — but not coins, Yang said. It would be the first major update to the banknotes in 24 years, as the current series, introduced in 2001, has remained in circulation amid rapid advances in printing technology and security standards. “Updating the notes is essential to safeguard the integrity
REASSURANCE: The US said Taiwan’s interests would not be harmed during the talk and that it remains steadfast in its support for the nation, the foreign minister said US President Donald Trump on Friday said he would bring up Taiwan with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) during a meeting on the sidelines of the APEC Summit in South Korea this week. “I will be talking about Taiwan [with Xi],” Trump told reporters before he departed for his trip to Asia, adding that he had “a lot of respect for Taiwan.” “We have a lot to talk about with President Xi, and he has a lot to talk about with us. I think we’ll have a good meeting,” Trump said. Taiwan has long been a contentious issue between the US and China.
RSS