President Chen Shui-bian (
National Security Council Secretary-General Chiou I-ren (
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday confirmed that two former high-ranking US officials will arrive in Taipei next month, but denied that their visit has anything to do with the recent controversy over Chen's proposal.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Michel Lu (呂慶龍) said yesterday that former US deputy secretary of state Richard Armitage and former deputy assistant secretary of State Randy Schriver will be in Taipei at the beginning of next month at the invitation of the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy.
Lu said that the pair's visit has nothing to do with Chen's proposal to scrap the unification council and guidelines because the trip was arranged a long time ago.
Lu made the remark in response to a media report quoting the Washington-based Nelson Report, which said that Armitage and Schriver will soon visit Taipei in a bid to explain to Chen the possible consequences if he does away with the council and guidelines.
Lu refused to confirm when Armitage and Schriver will arrive, saying that the details are still being arranged. Nor did he give any details about how long they will stay and whether they will meet with Chen or visit the National Security Council.
According to media reports, US National Security Council Asia specialist Dennis Wilder and the State Department's chief Taiwan staffer, Clifford Hart, traveled to Taipei earlier this month for meetings with Chen to try and convince him to drop plans to eliminate the unification council and guidelines.
The US State Department, however, has yet to fully confirm the trips.
Such trips have taken place in the past at times of particular strain in US-Taiwan relations. When Chen proposed holding a referendum in tandem with the 2004 presidential election, the US government sent Michael Green, then senior director for East Asian affairs of the US National Security Council, to Taipei in November 2003.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Chen said that the time is ripe to seriously consider whether to abolish the unification council and guidelines. He has said that he would like to see the security council come up with a report on the political and legal repercussions of the plan by the end of the month.
Meanwhile, the foreign ministry yesterday dismissed speculation that Taiwan's representative to Washington David Lee (李大維) is considering resigning due to the stress caused by the proposal to do away with the NUC and guidelines.
Calling the media's speculation "unethical," Lu quoted Lee as saying that "How can the commander-in-chief leave the battle field when the battle is still raging?"
The paramount chief of a volcanic island in Vanuatu yesterday said that he was “very impressed” by a UN court’s declaration that countries must tackle climate change. Vanuatu spearheaded the legal case at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands, which on Wednesday ruled that countries have a duty to protect against the threat of a warming planet. “I’m very impressed,” George Bumseng, the top chief of the Pacific archipelago’s island of Ambrym, told reporters in the capital, Port Vila. “We have been waiting for this decision for a long time because we have been victims of this climate change for
Rainfall is expected to become more widespread and persistent across central and southern Taiwan over the next few days, with the effects of the weather patterns becoming most prominent between last night and tomorrow, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Independent meteorologist Daniel Wu (吳德榮) said that based on the latest forecast models of the combination of a low-pressure system and southwesterly winds, rainfall and flooding are expected to continue in central and southern Taiwan from today to Sunday. The CWA also warned of flash floods, thunder and lightning, and strong gusts in these areas, as well as landslides and fallen
MASSIVE LOSS: If the next recall votes also fail, it would signal that the administration of President William Lai would continue to face strong resistance within the legislature The results of recall votes yesterday dealt a blow to the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) efforts to overturn the opposition-controlled legislature, as all 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers survived the recall bids. Backed by President William Lai’s (賴清德) DPP, civic groups led the recall drive, seeking to remove 31 out of 39 KMT lawmakers from the 113-seat legislature, in which the KMT and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) together hold a majority with 62 seats, while the DPP holds 51 seats. The scale of the recall elections was unprecedented, with another seven KMT lawmakers facing similar votes on Aug. 23. For a
All 24 lawmakers of the main opposition Chinese Nationalists Party (KMT) on Saturday survived historical nationwide recall elections, ensuring that the KMT along with Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) lawmakers will maintain opposition control of the legislature. Recall votes against all 24 KMT lawmakers as well as Hsinchu Mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) and KMT legislative caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁) failed to pass, according to Central Election Commission (CEC) figures. In only six of the 24 recall votes did the ballots cast in favor of the recall even meet the threshold of 25 percent of eligible voters needed for the recall to pass,