The US' senior director for East Asian affairs at the National Security Council (NSC), Dennis Wilder, told reporters on Thursday that Taiwan's statehood was an undecided issue, and as such it is not qualified to be a member of the UN.
"Membership in the United Nations requires statehood. Taiwan, or the Republic of China, is not at this point a state in the international community. The position of the United States government is that the ROC, Republic of China, is an issue undecided, that it has been left undecided, as you know, for many, many years," said Wilder, during a special White House briefing on US President George W. Bush's trip to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in Australia next week.
Wilder said that Bush will explain to Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) US policy toward President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) plan for a UN membership referendum and, at the same time, will express US concern over China's "worrisome" military buildup opposite Taiwan when Bush and Hu meet on the sidelines of the APEC meeting.
Bush and Hu will hold a bilateral discussion in Sydney next Thursday afternoon with Taiwan among the topics to be discussed, Wilder said.
The meeting will be the first time the two leaders have conferred face-to-face since the referendum issue heated up in recent weeks, culminating in an accusation by US Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte this week that the referendum is seen in Washington as a move toward a declaration of independence.
The Bush administration "find[s] the attempt by the DPP [Democratic Progressive Party] in Taiwan to call for a referendum on [UN membership] a little bit perplexing as to why this would be useful, given the fact that Taiwan is not going to be able to join the United Nations under current circumstances and that it only adds a degree of tension to cross-straits [sic] relations that we deem unnecessary," Wilder said.
"So the president will talk about this, I'm sure, with Hu Jintao," he said.
Bush "will explain the American position. Hu Jintao usually wants a recommitment by the United States to the three communiques and to our standing one-China policy. I'm sure the president will be willing to give him that," Wilder said.
Bush's reminder to Hu that the US considers Taiwan's status still unresolved would be in stark contrast to Beijing's position that Taiwan is part of China, and would come as China is reportedly considering an attempt to get the UN General Assembly to assert Chinese sovereignty over Taiwan at its meeting next month.
In his remarks, Wilder also noted that Washington is "very supportive of Taiwan on many, many fronts," including efforts to make sure Taiwan is treated "appropriately" in APEC, the WHO and "many other international organizations."
As part of the Bush-Hu discussion of Taiwan, Bush will also call on China "to do things to lower the tensions in the straits [sic]," Wilder said.
"There has been a large-scale, for example, Chinese military buildup opposite Taiwan, and that is worrisome," he said.
"And we certainly do not want to see any situation in which Beijing would consider the use of force or the threat of force against Taiwan," he said.
"We also think Beijing could do more to reach out to the duly elected leaders in Taiwan. We're hopeful, for example, that once elections take place in Taiwan, that Beijing will do more to reach out to those leaders," Wilder said.
"So there are things that Beijing could be doing to ease the tensions as well, and I'm sure the president will be talking to President Hu about that," Wilder said.
In Taipei, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday issued a statement in response to Wilder's remarks.
"Taiwan's independent sovereignty is unquestionable. Such a fact would not be changed because of foreign officials' comments," the statement said. "Taiwan and the US currently do not have an official diplomatic relations, but it would not affect the fact that Republic of China [Taiwan] is an independent sovereignty."
When approached for comment yesterday, DPP presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (
Taiwan, having its own judiciary, military, legislature and budget, and where voters elect their own president, is definitely a country, he said.
DPP Legislator Hsu Kuo-yung (
"We have the four elements -- a people, a territory, sovereignty and the ability to interact with other countries, therefore we are a country. As for recognition, it is just a principle upon which diplomatic relationships can be established," Hsu said.
Hsu said the US denial of Taiwan's statehood was irrelevant given that the US does not have diplomatic ties with the nation.
KMT Legislator Kuo Su-chun (
"It was the DPP's UN referendum plan that provoked the strong reaction from the US which vented its anger on the name `ROC,'" Kuo said.
Kuo said that what Wilder had said would not stop the KMT from pushing for the country's "return" to the UN, even though the US had denied Taiwan's statehood.
"The KMT will make the move at the right time in a practical and acceptable way," she said.
Kuo called on the DPP to back off from its UN proposal and unite with the KMT to make Taiwan visible and audible in the international community.
Additional reporting by Shih Hsiu-chuan & CNA
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
RSS