The EU insisted yesterday that its arms embargo against China would remain until Beijing's human rights record improved, despite the two sides agreeing to expand their strategic partnership.
"We are working toward lifting the arms embargo. [But] we want to see the right environment," EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner told journalists on the final day of her three-day visit to China.
"For instance, we want to see the ratification of the [UN] Covenant on Civil and Political Rights of [its] citizens," she said. "We would also like to see the release of the prisoners from Tiananmen Square and also the abolishment of [the extra-legal penal system of] education through labor."
An EU official in Beijing said the criteria listed by Ferrero-Waldner in relation to the lifting of the arms embargo were not new.
But her comments coincided with the kickstarting this week of negotiations between Beijing and the EU to expand an economic and commercial treaty into other fields, such as the environment.
Ferrero-Waldner said the EU was not ready yet to upgrade China to market economy status, a step that would offer China greater protection from trade retaliation measures.
She said the new pact could take "a couple of years" to fully negotiate and underscored the EU's hope to outline cooperation on energy security, climate change and sustainable development.
The day before, Ferrero-Waldner had talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing (
Li said on Wednesday that China was also looking forward to expanding the partnership. But he also denounced the arms embargo as "political discrimination."
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
BULLY TACTICS: Beijing has continued its incursions into Taiwan’s airspace even as Xi Jinping talked about Taiwan being part of the Chinese family and nation China should stop its coercion of Taiwan and respect mainstream public opinion in Taiwan about sovereignty if its expression of goodwill is genuine, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday. Ministry spokesman Jeff Liu (劉永健) made the comment in response to media queries about a meeting between former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) the previous day. Ma voiced support for the so-called “1992 consensus,” while Xi said that although the two sides of the Taiwan Strait have “different systems,” this does not change the fact that they are “part of the same country,” and that “external
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source