President Chen Shui-bian (
Presidential Office Secretary-General Mark Chen (
"We have received an invitation from the Costa Rican government to attend the inauguration of President Oscar Arias on May 8. I believe President Chen is more than happy to attend the event," Mark Chen told reporters at the legislature yesterday morning.
When asked whether Libya would be included in the schedule, Mark Chen said that government agencies are assessing such a trip and looking into arrangements.
According to an Apple Daily report yesterday, Chen will visit Libya as well as the nation's political allies Costa Rica, Haiti, Paraguay, Chad and Burkina Faso.
Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Michael Kau (
"We can't reveal any details about this for the moment because China might try to obstruct the arrangement," Kao said in response to questioning in the legislature's Organic Laws and Statues Committee.
Kao said that the ministry has many plans for "head of state diplomacy" and many destinations are under consideration.
On Jan. 18, President Chen announced that he had accepted an invitation from Saif Qaddafi, the third-eldest son of Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi, and had promised to visit the north African state in the near future. He made the remarks after the two met at the Presidential Office.
President Chen also asked Saif Qaddafi to pass on an invitation to his father, asking him to visit Taiwan.
However, the Libyan government denied that Muammar Qaddafi had extended such invitation and reaffirmed its commitment to the "one China" policy.
Libya's announcement was made as Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing (
"We reaffirm that we recognize only one China," Libyan Foreign Minister Mohammed Abdel-Rahman Shalgam said in a statement on Jan. 19.
Taiwan had diplomatic relations with Libya from 1959 to 1978. Taiwan maintained a trade office there from 1980 to 1997 after Libya switched its diplomatic recognition to China. The office was closed in 1997 due to pressure from China.
Officials at the Presidential Office attributed Taiwan's recent good relationship with Libya to the long-term efforts of the National Security Council. Officials stressed that it is important for Taiwan to build good relations with oil-producing countries in both Africa and the Middle East.
Regarding whether President Chen will stop in Washington or New York, Mark Chen said that they have not yet filed a request.
An official from the Presidential Office said yesterday that President Chen Shui-bian's plan to make stopovers in the US during visits to Taiwan's diplomatic allies is not expected to be affected by his decision to cease the function of the National Unification Council and the application of the National Unification Guidelines.
Meanwhile, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Francisco Hwang (黃瀧元) yesterday said in the legislature's Budget and Final Accounts committee that the ministry hasn't obtained the order to arrange a presidential trip to Libya.
But Hwang said that the ministry's Department of Central and South American Affairs has started to arrange a high-level visit to Costa Rica.
Hwang was also questioned by opposition lawmakers over loans to some diplomatic allies.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Lawmaker Lai Shyi-bao (
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
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