The administration of US President Barack Obama will continue to support Taiwan’s efforts to gain more international space, including becoming an observer at the World Health Assembly (WHA), US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a recent statement.
The statement was made in response to an inquiry from senators Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Johnny Isakson of Georgia on Clinton’s stance on Taiwan’s WHA bid if she was confirmed as Washington’s top diplomat.
Taiwan was one of the WHO’s original members, but had to forfeit its membership in 1979 after the nation gave up its seat at the UN in 1971. Since 1997, Taiwan has made repeated attempts to re-enter the health body, but each time it has been rejected because of Beijing’s interference.
Since 2004, the US and Japan have publicly shown their support for Taiwan’s bid to become a WHA observer. It has been the subject of much speculation that Taiwan will finally get its wish this May as Beijing is expected to loosen its grip following the recent warming in cross-strait ties.
On Thursday, the Centers for Disease Control announced the WHO had agreed to include Taiwan in the International Health Regulations 2005, a global health framework focused on disease surveillance and reporting and had asked the nation to recommend a “point of contact in Taipei.”
Sources close to the two senators said Clinton expressed her approval of both President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) for capitalizing on the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) March presidential election victory to improve cross-strait ties on economic and security issues.
Clinton said under such circumstances and within the realm of the so-called “one China” policy, she believed it would be appropriate for Washington to support Taiwan’s efforts to gain more international space, such as the bid to become a WHA observer.
She also stressed that it was crucial that Beijing show the Taiwanese people that Ma’s pragmatic and non-confrontational approach toward China would glean positive results.
Taiwan’s continual alienation at the WHO would result in public health issues, she said, adding that “just like you, I believe the US should work with Taiwan to correct the situation.”
Congressional members said Clinton also answered favorably questions from Louisiana Senator David Vitter and South Carolina Senator Jim DeMint on strengthening communications with high ranking Taiwanese officials and whether she would maintain the commitment to Taiwan’s security as stated in the Taiwan Relations Act by continuing to sell arms.
One of two tropical depressions that formed off Taiwan yesterday morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. The weather system is expected to move northwest as it builds momentum, possibly intensifying this weekend into a typhoon, which would be called Mitag, Lee said. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is forecast to approach the southeast of Taiwan on Monday next week and pass through the Bashi Channel
WARNING: People in coastal areas need to beware of heavy swells and strong winds, and those in mountainous areas should brace for heavy rain, the CWA said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday issued sea and land warnings for Typhoon Ragasa, forecasting that it would continue to intensify and affect the nation the most today and tomorrow. People in Hualien and Taitung counties, and mountainous areas in Yilan and Pingtung counties, should brace for damage caused by extremely heavy rain brought by the typhoon’s outer rim, as it was upgraded to a super typhoon yesterday morning, the CWA said. As of 5:30pm yesterday, the storm’s center was about 630km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving northwest at 21kph, and its maximum wind speed had reached
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said that it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Ragasa this morning and a land warning at night as it approached Taiwan. Ragasa intensified from a tropical storm into a typhoon at 8am yesterday, the CWA said, adding that at 2pm, it was about 1,110km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip. The typhoon was moving northwest at 13kph, with sustained winds of up to 119kph and gusts reaching 155kph, the CWA Web site showed. Forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said that Ragasa was projected to strengthen as it neared the Bashi Channel, with its 200km
PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENTS: Hualien and Taitung counties declared today a typhoon day, while schools and offices in parts of Kaohsiung and Pingtung counties are also to close Typhoon Ragasa was forecast to hit its peak strength and come closest to Taiwan from yesterday afternoon through today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Taiwan proper could be out of the typhoon’s radius by midday and the sea warning might be lifted tonight, it added. CWA senior weather specialist Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said that Ragasa’s radius had reached the Hengchun Peninsula by 11am yesterday and was expected to hit Taitung County and Kaohsiung by yesterday evening. Ragasa was forecast to move to Taiwan’s southern offshore areas last night and to its southwestern offshore areas early today, she added. As of 8pm last night,
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