The Mainland Affairs Council yesterday denied it had sent secret a delegation to China to discuss expanding cross-strait charter flights prior to the government's recent announcement that it would further liberalize air links.
Council Deputy Chairman Liu Te-shun (
Former KMT chairman Lien Chan (
The report quoted Chen as saying in an interview with the local CTI news channel on Sunday night that "the April 8-10 discussion had achieved considerable breakthroughs" on the opening of cross-strait charter cargo flights and passenger flights on weekends and holidays.
Liu yesterday denied the report.
Talks in progress
"There have been ongoing communications [between both governments] and the talks have proceeded in accordance with our designated goals. There were absolutely no secret envoys involved in our communications," Liu said.
Liu however confirmed that proxies of the two governments have engaged in "intensive" communications recently regarding the expansion of cross-strait charter flights.
The council last week called for the Chinese authorities to speed up talks on expanding cross-strait passenger charter flights and hinted that the flights would soon be expanded to include the three major Chinese festivals, including the dragon boat festival and the mid-Autumn festival, in addition to the current Lunar New Year festival charter flights.
Liu yesterday said the government had commissioned the Taipei Airlines Association, which has helped negotiate direct charter flights over previous Lunar New Year holidays, to help arrange negotiations on cross-strait cargo and passenger charter flights.
No tourists yet
In response to China's announcement on Sunday of rules for travel by its citizens to Taiwan, Liu said the measures still fell far short of what was needed for Chinese tourists to arrive in Taiwan, as Beijing had yet to add Taiwan to the list of travel destinations for its citizens.
There were still a number of inconsistencies between China's regulations and Taiwan's, such as a demand that Taiwanese travel agencies wanting to bring in Chinese tourists be approved by the Chinese authorities in advance, Liu said.
"We don't want China to announce its measures at different stages. This looks very insincere to the Taiwanese people. If they want to do it, just do it once and for all," Liu said.
Beijing’s continued provocations in the Taiwan Strait reveal its intention to unilaterally change the “status quo” in the area, the US Department of State said on Saturday, calling for a peaceful resolution to cross-strait issues. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) reported that four China Coast Guard patrol vessels entered restricted and prohibited waters near Kinmen County on Friday and again on Saturday. A State Department spokesperson said that Washington was aware of the incidents, and urged all parties to exercise restraint and refrain from unilaterally changing the “status quo.” “Maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is in line with our [the
EXTENDED RANGE: Hsiung Sheng missiles, 100 of which might be deployed by the end of the year, could reach Chinese command posts and airport runways, a source said A NT$16.9 billion (US$534.93 million) project to upgrade the military’s missile defense systems would be completed this year, allowing the deployment of at least 100 long-range Hsiung Sheng missiles and providing more deterrence against China, military sources said on Saturday. Hsiung Sheng missiles are an extended-range version of the Hsiung Feng IIE (HF-2E) surface-to-surface cruise missile, and are believed to have a range of up to 1,200km, which would allow them to hit targets well inside China. They went into mass production in 2022, the sources said. The project is part of a special budget for the Ministry of National Defense aimed at
READY TO WORK: Taiwan is eager to cooperate and is hopeful that like-minded states will continue to advocate for its inclusion in regional organizations, Lai said Maintaining the “status quo” in the Taiwan Strait, and peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region must be a top priority, president-elect William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday after meeting with a delegation of US academics. Leaders of the G7, US President Joe Biden and other international heads of state have voiced concerns about the situation in the Strait, as stability in the region is necessary for a safe, peaceful and prosperous world, Lai said. The vice president, who is to be inaugurated in May, welcomed the delegation and thanked them for their support for Taiwan and issues concerning the Strait. The international community
COOPERATION: Two crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank off Kinmen were rescued, two were found dead and another two were still missing at press time The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) was yesterday working with Chinese rescuers to find two missing crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank southwest of Kinmen County yesterday, killing two crew. The joint operation managed to rescue two of the boat’s six crewmembers, but two were already dead when they were pulled from the water, the agency said in a statement. Rescuers are still searching for two others from the Min Long Yu 61222, a boat registered in China’s Fujian Province that capsized and sank 1.03 nautical miles (1.9km) southwest of Dongding Island (東碇), it added. CGA Director-General Chou Mei-wu (周美伍) told a