The government will not follow the previous administration’s strategy of using the name “Taiwan” to apply to join the UN, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday.
The government is expected to unveil this year’s UN entry strategy by Aug. 16, ministry spokesman Henry Chen (陳銘政) said, adding that the administration had yet to finalize its decision on the name Taiwan will use in its UN bid this year.
A ministry official who wished to remain anonymous, however, said that “pragmatism” and “moderation” would be the key principles for this year’s bid to win support from the US, Japan and the EU.
Last September, for the first time since the country began applying to rejoin the UN in 1993, Taiwan attempted to join as a new member using the designation “Taiwan” instead of its official name of “Republic of China” (ROC).
The pan-blue camp objected to the move at the time, saying the strategy was bound to fail because it was “impractical” and “rigid,” a view rejected by the pan-green camp, which said that only the name “Taiwan” could fully safeguard the country’s dignity and sovereignty.
The ROC forfeited its UN membership in 1971 when the People’s Republic of China was admitted as China’s sole representative.
Last year’s application never made it to the UN general assembly because the UN’s Secretariat Office rejected it, citing the body’s adherence to the “one China” policy.
In tandem with this March’s presidential race, the pan-blue camp pitched a referendum asking voters to support a bid to “return” to the UN or any other international organization using a “pragmatic” and “flexible” title.
A pan-green backed UN referendum asked voters to support an application for UN membership under the name “Taiwan.”
Both proposals failed to reach the necessary threshold to be valid.
“As a result of the failure of the referendums, we cannot use the word ‘return’ or ‘join’ in our UN entry strategy this year,” said Chen, adding that the administration had not yet decided on whether to use “Chinese Taipei” in its bid as suggested by President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) during his campaign.
UN protocol requires all applications for new membership to be submitted at least one month prior to the UN General Assembly, which is scheduled for Sept. 16 this year.
“The government will have a strategy, but I cannot say what the strategy will be. There is still time,” Chen said.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CNA
HONG KONG SECURITY: The president blasted regulations requiring Taiwanese agents or political organizations to provide information on their Hong Kong-related activities President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday warned of countermeasures should controversial Chinese national security legislation imposed on Hong Kong undermine or harm Taiwanese interests. Article 43 of the legislation empowers the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to serve written notices to Taiwanese political organizations or individual agents to furnish information on their Hong Kong-related activities, including their personal particulars, finances, assets, expenditure and capital in the territory. Failure to comply or providing false or incomplete information can result in a fine of HK$100,000 (US$12,903) or imprisonment of six months or two years respectively. Tsai said that Taiwan would keep a close watch on how
PROBE LAUNCHED: An officer who served as a supervisor in the drill died in an apparent suicide after the accident, which was caused by unexpected waves Two marines who were on Friday injured in a military exercise in the waters off Kaohsiung passed away yesterday, Navy Command said. The marines — surnamed Tsai (蔡), 26, and a sergeant surnamed Chen (陳), 36 — were in a seven-member Marine Corps team that encountered rough seas during a simulated response to enemy forces landing on Taiwan. Their rubber craft overturned in waters off Taoziyuan (桃子園) beach in Zuoying District (左營), injuring four of the marines. They were rushed to hospital, where three of them — Tsai, Chen and a 34-year-old sergeant — were taken to an intensive care unit
MORAL COURAGE: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs urged the global community to face China’s intention to subdue Taiwan and reject such irrational requests The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday strongly condemned the Chinese government for meddling with US officials’ interactions with Taiwan after FBI Director Christopher Wray revealed China’s efforts to discourage US officials from visiting Taiwan. The greatest long-term threat to the US’ information security and intellectual property, as well as its economic vitality, is China’s counterintelligence and economic espionage operations, Wray told a video event at the Hudson Institute in Washington. Beijing is engaged in a highly sophisticated and maligning foreign influence campaign, with methods that include bribery, blackmail and covert deals, he said. Giving an example, Wray said that when a US official
‘SIGNAL TO ALLIES’: The US Navy’s exercises are not in response to those carried out by China, the commander of the strike group led by the USS ‘Ronald Reagan’ said Two US aircraft carriers were yesterday conducting exercises in the disputed South China Sea, the US Navy said as China also carried out military drills that have been criticized by the US Department of Defense and neighboring states. China and the US have accused each other of stoking tension in the waterway at a time of strained relations over everything from COVID-19 to trade to Hong Kong. The USS Nimitz and USS Ronald Reagan were carrying out operations and exercises in the South China Sea “to support a free and open Indo-Pacific,” the navy said in a statement. It did not say exactly
RSS