The US considers China's proposed anti-secession law to be a threat to the status quo in the Taiwan Strait, Minister of Foreign Affairs Mark Chen (陳唐山) said yesterday.
The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress will start a four-day discussion of the law today, Chen told reporters at a tea party. He added that the last thing the US wanted to see now was a conflict between Taiwan and China.
If China insisted on enacting the law, "the people of Taiwan will definitely react to it and tensions will rise," Chen said.
After recent communication with Washington concerning the anti-secession law, Chen said he could say with "firm assurance" that the US sees the law as "a move to change the status quo."
"The US doesn't welcome the law. If Washington continues with its current stance over the law, it will apply pressure on China," he said.
Chen said that China chose this time to introduce the anti-secession bill because it knew the US needed its help in Iraq and North Korea.
"Beijing could have issued the proposal much earlier, but it kept delaying announcement of this until now. It is very careful in handling the issue," Chen said.
"The US doesn't want problems in the Taiwan Strait, but China deliberately brought up the bill now to force Washington to pay attention to the Taiwan problem," he said.
Chen said the US and China "use each other" to solve problems that concern them most.
Playing down recent comments by US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage that Taiwan is one of the biggest landmines in China-US relations, Chen said that based on information received from US officials he was sure that the Washington's Taiwan policy had not changed.
Chen said that what he desired most for Taiwan-US relations were the direct communication channels which senior Chinese and US officials enjoy.
The nation has suffered a lot because it cannot explain many issues to Washington directly, Chen said.
"Some visiting US academics once asked me what I want most in our relations with the US. I told them I want a `hotline' between the two sides," Chen said.
He added that better communication channels could reduce misunderstandings between the two countries.
Taiwan yesterday denied Chinese allegations that its military was behind a cyberattack on a technology company in Guangzhou, after city authorities issued warrants for 20 suspects. The Guangzhou Municipal Public Security Bureau earlier yesterday issued warrants for 20 people it identified as members of the Information, Communications and Electronic Force Command (ICEFCOM). The bureau alleged they were behind a May 20 cyberattack targeting the backend system of a self-service facility at the company. “ICEFCOM, under Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party, directed the illegal attack,” the warrant says. The bureau placed a bounty of 10,000 yuan (US$1,392) on each of the 20 people named in
The High Court yesterday found a New Taipei City woman guilty of charges related to helping Beijing secure surrender agreements from military service members. Lee Huei-hsin (李慧馨) was sentenced to six years and eight months in prison for breaching the National Security Act (國家安全法), making illegal compacts with government employees and bribery, the court said. The verdict is final. Lee, the manager of a temple in the city’s Lujhou District (蘆洲), was accused of arranging for eight service members to make surrender pledges to the Chinese People’s Liberation Army in exchange for money, the court said. The pledges, which required them to provide identification
Nine retired generals from Taiwan, Japan and the US have been invited to participate in a tabletop exercise hosted by the Taipei School of Economics and Political Science Foundation tomorrow and Wednesday that simulates a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan in 2030, the foundation said yesterday. The five retired Taiwanese generals would include retired admiral Lee Hsi-min (李喜明), joined by retired US Navy admiral Michael Mullen and former chief of staff of the Japan Self-Defense Forces general Shigeru Iwasaki, it said. The simulation aims to offer strategic insights into regional security and peace in the Taiwan Strait, it added. Foundation chair Huang Huang-hsiung
’DISTORTION’: Beijing’s assertion that the US agreed with its position on Taiwan is a recurring tactic it uses to falsely reinforce its sovereignty claims, MOFA said The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday said Chinese state media deliberately distorted Taiwan’s sovereign status, following reports that US President Donald Trump agreed to uphold the “one China” policy in a phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). During the more than one-hour-long call, Xi urged Trump to retreat from trade measures that roiled the global economy and cautioned him against threatening steps on Taiwan, a Chinese government summary of the call said. China’s official Xinhua news agency quoted Xi as saying that the US should handle the Taiwan issue cautiously and avoid the two countries being drawn into dangerous
RSS