Japan's prime minister said yesterday that he is baffled by the Chinese premier's refusal to meet one-on-one, fueling a row dating back to World War II and clouding a summit with grand visions for a pan-Asian community.
South Korea and Southeast Asian nations inked an accord during meetings yesterday to set up a free trade area, while the Philippines invited Russia and China to join a Southeast Asian anti-terror coalition.
China's Prime Minister Wen Jiabao (
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo said she hoped "these two very important friends of ours will be able to sort out their political differences because their economic relationship is very good."
Koizumi told ASEAN leaders during their meeting yesterday that he found Wen's attitude to be inexplicable.
"No two nations are without their share of differences. I cannot understand why China won't have a meeting because of one problem," Koizumi was quoted as saying by a Japanese delegation official.
The Chinese delegation did not immediately respond, but Wen said late on Monday that Koizumi lacks the "correct approach toward historical questions ... deeply hurting the feeling[s] of the Chinese people, the Korean people and the people of Asia."
Koizumi maintains his visits are meant to express his remorse about the war.
China and South Korea say Japan has not fully atoned for wartime atrocities.
Meanwhile Russia held its first-ever summit with ASEAN, reflecting its desire to forge closer economic ties with the region.
The meetings in Kuala Lumpur end today when the 10 ASEAN leaders meet with counterparts from Japan, China, India, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand at the inaugural East Asia Summit.
The 16-country group aims for an eventual Asian economic community comprising half the world's population and a combined economy of US$8.3 trillion, but the region's many rivalries make that goal elusive.
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday criticized the nuclear energy referendum scheduled for Saturday next week, saying that holding the plebiscite before the government can conduct safety evaluations is a denial of the public’s right to make informed decisions. Lai, who is also the chairman of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), made the comments at the party’s Central Standing Committee meeting at its headquarters in Taipei. ‘NO’ “I will go to the ballot box on Saturday next week to cast a ‘no’ vote, as we all should do,” he said as he called on the public to reject the proposition to reactivate the decommissioned
In his National Day Rally speech on Sunday, Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (黃循財) quoted the Taiwanese song One Small Umbrella (一支小雨傘) to describe his nation’s situation. Wong’s use of such a song shows Singapore’s familiarity with Taiwan’s culture and is a perfect reflection of exchanges between the two nations, Representative to Singapore Tung Chen-yuan (童振源) said yesterday in a post on Facebook. Wong quoted the song, saying: “As the rain gets heavier, I will take care of you, and you,” in Mandarin, using it as a metaphor for Singaporeans coming together to face challenges. Other Singaporean politicians have also used Taiwanese songs
US President Donald Trump on Friday said that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) told him China would not invade Taiwan while Trump is in office. Trump made the remarks in an interview with Fox News, ahead of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. “I will tell you, you know, you have a very similar thing with President Xi of China and Taiwan, but I don’t believe there’s any way it’s going to happen as long as I’m here. We’ll see,” Trump said during an interview on Fox News’ Special Report. “He told me: ‘I will never do
The Legislative Yuan yesterday approved an aid and recovery package authorizing the government to allocate up to NT$60 billion (US$1.99 billion) for regions hit by Typhoon Danas and subsequent torrential rains last month. Proposed by the Executive Yuan on Aug. 7, the bill was passed swiftly after ruling and opposition lawmakers reached a consensus in inter-party talks on relief funding and assistance for disaster-stricken areas. The package increases the government’s spending cap from the originally proposed NT$56 billion to NT$60 billion, earmarked for repairing and rebuilding infrastructure, electricity systems, telecommunications and cable TV networks, cultural heritage sites and other public facilities.
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