US and Chinese officials meeting yesterday said they hoped for better military relations and a peaceful settlement to disputes over the future of Taiwan.
Washington hopes for "real progress" on a wide range of military issues, US Deputy UnderSecretary of Defense for the Asia-Pacific Richard Lawless told his Chinese counterpart Major General Zhang Bangdong (張邦東) before they began two days of closed door talks.
"This meeting represents the importance both sides have attached to their military relations," said Tu Qiming (
A US embassy spokeswoman said the talks yesterday and today would center on regional security issues including those related to Taiwan and North Korea.
Washington regards military ties with Beijing as a key part of their relations. Contacts were cut off following the collision of a US Navy surveillance plane with a Chinese fighter jet in 2001 but have warmed over the past two years. Relations have also been strained by US support for Taiwan.
During talks yesterday, the two sides expressed "hope that the Taiwan issue can be peacefully resolved," Tu said.
China plans to pass an anti-secession legislation in March, a law that Taiwan fears could be a pretext for an attack.
Tu said the two sides did not discuss the EU's proposed plan to lift a 15-year arms embargo against China this year.
"I do not anticipate it coming up during this round of talks," he added.
Washington opposes lifting the ban for fear that European arms could be used against US forces should they be called upon to defend Taiwan.
China's official Xinhua News Agency said yesterday's meeting was the first of its kind between the two sides.
Lawless was scheduled to meet today with Xiong Guangkai (熊光楷), deputy chief of general staff of the People's Liberation Army (PLA).
The security talks in Beijing follow a visit to Washington last October by General Liang Guanglie (梁光烈), chairman of the general staff of the PLA. He was told by then-US secretary of state Colin Powell that the US was committed to defend Taiwan in accordance with the Taiwan Relations Act.
RESPONSE: The transit sends a message that China’s alignment with other countries would not deter the West from defending freedom of navigation, an academic said Canadian frigate the Ville de Quebec and Australian guided-missile destroyer the Brisbane transited the Taiwan Strait yesterday morning, the first time the two nations have conducted a joint freedom of navigation operation. The Canadian and Australian militaries did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Ministry of National Defense declined to confirm the passage, saying only that Taiwan’s armed forces had deployed surveillance and reconnaissance assets, along with warships and combat aircraft, to safeguard security across the Strait. The two vessels were observed transiting northward along the eastern side of the Taiwan Strait’s median line, with Japan being their most likely destination,
GLOBAL ISSUE: If China annexes Taiwan, ‘it will not stop its expansion there, as it only becomes stronger and has more force to expand further,’ the president said China’s military and diplomatic expansion is not a sole issue for Taiwan, but one that risks world peace, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that Taiwan would stand with the alliance of democratic countries to preserve peace through deterrence. Lai made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times). “China is strategically pushing forward to change the international order,” Lai said, adding that China established the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank, launched the Belt and Road Initiative, and pushed for yuan internationalization, because it wants to replace the democratic rules-based international
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
The National Development Council (NDC) yesterday unveiled details of new regulations that ease restrictions on foreigners working or living in Taiwan, as part of a bid to attract skilled workers from abroad. The regulations, which could go into effect in the first quarter of next year, stem from amendments to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) passed by lawmakers on Aug. 29. Students categorized as “overseas compatriots” would be allowed to stay and work in Taiwan in the two years after their graduation without obtaining additional permits, doing away with the evaluation process that is currently required,
RSS