The White House is standing tough on US President Barack Obama’s plans to meet the Dalai Lama, firmly rejecting Chinese pressure to snub him as rows escalate between Washington and Beijing.
The Chinese government reacted yesterday to the plans by saying it “resolutely opposes” the Dalai Lama’s visit to the US and any of his meetings with US leaders.
“We urge the US side to clearly recognize the high sensitivity of the Tibet issue and handle related issues carefully and appropriately to avoid causing more harm to Sino-US ties,” Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ma Zhaoxu (馬朝旭) said in a statement.
“The president told China leaders during his trip last year that he would meet with the Dalai Lama, and he intends to do so,” White House Spokesman Bill Burton told reporters. “The Dalai Lama is an internationally respected religious and cultural leader, and the president will meet with him in that capacity.”
The Dalai Lama is due in the US for a 10-day trip later this month, his secretary said, and will be in Washington from Feb. 17 to Feb. 19 before speaking and teaching engagements in Los Angeles and Florida.
Obama has sought wide-ranging ties with the rising Asian power on issues from the global economy to North Korea. Burton said the president remained committed to “building a positive, comprehensive and cooperative relationship with China.”
In October, Obama avoided meeting the Dalai Lama when he visited Washington. The move was controversial at home, but the White House said Obama did not want to sour ties with Beijing before his maiden visit to China.
Ma said the two sides had discussed the issue during Obama’s visit to China in November, when Chinese leaders stated their “firm opposition toward any national leader or government official meeting the Dalai Lama.”
But Burton said “we have human rights concerns about the treatment of Tibetans. We urge the government of China to protect the unique cultural and religious traditions of Tibet.”
Meanwhile, a senator said on Tuesday he had asked 30 US companies, including Apple, Facebook and Skype, for information on their human rights practices in China after Google’s decision no longer to cooperate with Chinese Web censorship.
“Google sets a strong example in standing up to the Chinese government’s continued failure to respect ... fundamental human rights,” Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin said in a statement. “I look forward to learning more about whether other American companies are willing to follow Google’s lead.”
Durbin, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law, said his panel would hold a hearing in March to question Google and other firms.
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
HOTEL HIRING: An official said that hoteliers could begin hiring migrant workers next year, but must adhere to a rule requiring a NT$2,000 salary hike for Taiwanese The government is to allow the hospitality industry to recruit mid-level migrant workers for housekeeping and three other lines of work after the Executive Yuan yesterday approved a proposal by the Ministry of Labor. A shortage of workers at hotels and accommodation facilities was discussed at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee. A 2023 survey conducted by the Tourism Administration found that Taiwan’s lodging industry was short of about 6,600 housekeeping and cleaning workers, the agency said in a report to the committee. The shortage of workers in the industry is being studied, the report said. Hotel and Lodging Division Deputy Director Cheng
‘SECRETS’: While saying China would not attack during his presidency, Donald Trump declined to say how Washington would respond if Beijing were to take military action US President Donald Trump said that China would not take military action against Taiwan while he is president, as the Chinese leaders “know the consequences.” Trump made the statement during an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes program that aired on Sunday, a few days after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea. “He [Xi] has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘we would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in the interview. However, he repeatedly declined to say exactly how Washington would respond in
RSS