The nation's newly forged ties with Vanuatu remained mired in confusion yesterday, with Taiwanese officials insisting that relations have not been altered despite reports of a Cabinet statement from the South Pacific nation saying ties with Taiwan would be revoked.
"Our officials in Vanuatu spoke with the Prime Minister [Serge Vohor] this morning [Friday]. Vohor had assured them that nothing had changed and that they needed some time," Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Michel Lu (
According to Lu, discussion of Vanuatu's ties with both Taiwan and China will come up again on Monday during a parliamentary session in Port Vila.
The Associated Press (AP) reported yesterday that Vohor had caved in to pressure from his Cabinet to abandon a deal granting diplomatic recognition to Taiwan. The report said "`Vohor's Council of Minsters had voted to `unilaterally and unequivocally revoke all agreements and undertakings ... made on behalf of Vanuatu,' a Cabinet statement said" late Thursday.
"Logically, it makes no sense to say the Cabinet agreed to a resolution on the matter, as there is still disagreement in the Cabinet," Lu said, saying that China had been spreading rumors about the Cabinet's decision to back the "one China" principle.
Lu also said that the ministry was on top of the debacle in the tiny South Pacific nation, saying that they had spoken with Vanuatuan government spokesman Kalvau Moli who had denied reports that ties with Taiwan would be dissolved.
"Our flag is still flying high in Vanuatu," Lu said.
The AP reported that Moli had said that the premier "will go by the decision ... the verdict of the Council of Ministers" and break his agreement to recognize Taiwan.
The report further said that Vanuatu's ministers said they "will request the Peoples' Republic of China to consider providing budgetary assistance" to Vanuatu.
"In a letter to the Chinese government dated Nov. 6, and published Friday in a local newspaper, Vohor said that `Taiwan has recently indicated its commitment to provide US$20 million budgetary support annually for five years to the Vanuatu government,'" the report said.
"It's their culture. They are Melanesian and would rather avoid confrontation. They prefer to sit down and discuss the matter," Lu said, saying some more time would be needed to resolve the controversy.
DAREDEVIL: Honnold said it had always been a dream of his to climb Taipei 101, while a Netflix producer said the skyscraper was ‘a real icon of this country’ US climber Alex Honnold yesterday took on Taiwan’s tallest building, becoming the first person to scale Taipei 101 without a rope, harness or safety net. Hundreds of spectators gathered at the base of the 101-story skyscraper to watch Honnold, 40, embark on his daredevil feat, which was also broadcast live on Netflix. Dressed in a red T-shirt and yellow custom-made climbing shoes, Honnold swiftly moved up the southeast face of the glass and steel building. At one point, he stepped onto a platform midway up to wave down at fans and onlookers who were taking photos. People watching from inside
A Vietnamese migrant worker yesterday won NT$12 million (US$379,627) on a Lunar New Year scratch card in Kaohsiung as part of Taiwan Lottery Co’s (台灣彩券) “NT$12 Million Grand Fortune” (1200萬大吉利) game. The man was the first top-prize winner of the new game launched on Jan. 6 to mark the Lunar New Year. Three Vietnamese migrant workers visited a Taiwan Lottery shop on Xinyue Street in Kaohsiung’s Gangshan District (崗山), a store representative said. The player bought multiple tickets and, after winning nothing, held the final lottery ticket in one hand and rubbed the store’s statue of the Maitreya Buddha’s belly with the other,
Japan’s strategic alliance with the US would collapse if Tokyo were to turn away from a conflict in Taiwan, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said yesterday, but distanced herself from previous comments that suggested a possible military response in such an event. Takaichi expressed her latest views on a nationally broadcast TV program late on Monday, where an opposition party leader criticized her for igniting tensions with China with the earlier remarks. Ties between Japan and China have sunk to the worst level in years after Takaichi said in November that a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could bring about a Japanese
‘COMMITTED TO DETERRENCE’: Washington would stand by its allies, but it can only help as much as countries help themselves, Raymond Greene said The US is committed to deterrence in the first island chain, but it should not bear the burden alone, as “freedom is not free,” American Institute in Taiwan Director Raymond Greene said in a speech at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research’s “Strengthening Resilience: Defense as the Engine of Development” seminar in Taipei yesterday. In the speech, titled “Investing Together and a Secure and Prosperous Future,” Greene highlighted the contributions of US President Donald Trump’s administration to Taiwan’s defense efforts, including the establishment of supply chains for drones and autonomous systems, offers of security assistance and the expansion of
RSS