Minister of Foreign Affairs Timothy Yang (楊進添) again called for restraint by Japan and China in their handling of the Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台) controvery, saying the current situation has caused concern about the outbreak of a war.
Yang made the call at a scheduled press conference, timed to coincide with the 81st anniversary of the “918 Event” that marked the invasion of Shenyang, China, by Japan on Sept. 18, 1931.
The event eventually led to an eight-year (1937 to 1945) war against Japanese occupation of China, which was then ruled by Chiang Kai-shek’s (蔣介石) Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) regime.
“Today was the 81st anniversary of the 918 Event. We do not want to see recurrence of the same tragedy, which happened when the Republic of China [ROC] launched a war against Japan in 1937,” Yang said.
Yang dismissed accusations that the timing of the press conference was peculiar, saying he had repeatedly been asked by the media in recent days to give his views regarding the Diaoyutai Islands and the 918 Event.
However, he emphasized that “today is a day of historical significance.”
“In retrospect, 81 years ago today, Japan violated international law and disturbed the peace as it launched a war of aggression against the ROC to annex territory in northeast [China] and stepped up its offensive against us thereafter,” he said.
“In order to defend independent sovereignty and territorial integrity, the ROC started a war against Japan in 1937,” he said. “The war caused the death of more than 25 million military personnel and civilians in mainland China. Japanese nationals also paid a heavy price in the war.”
“In the eight-year-long war, most victims were ordinary civilians. The reason we mentioned the 918 Event was that we deeply feel the horror of war and that the trauma of war has made peace all the more precious,” Yang said.
Japan’s unilateral “nationalization” of the Diaoyutai Islands, over which “our country owns sovereignty” and the frequent appearance of Japanese coast guard vessels and Chinese marine-surveillance ships in the area have increased tensions to such an extent that conflicts could occur at any moment, he said.
“We regret that quite a few countries have laid fuses that could lead to conflicts and damage innocent people because of their unilateral actions so many years after World War II ended,” Yang said.
Yang reiterated the East China Sea peace initiative proposed by President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) last month, which calls for all parties to shelve differences over their claims over the sovereignty of the region and to jointly explore and develop resources to maintain perpetual peace and prosperity.
Meanwhile, about 100 Taiwanese activists burned a Japanese flag in downtown Taipei yesterday in a protest over the Diaoyutai dispute and show of support for the protests in China.
“When our compatriots in the mainland are striving to protect the Diaoyutais, we people in Taiwan cannot remain silent,” said a spokesman for the China Unification Promotion Party, the organizer of the protest.
The protesters called for cooperation with China to get back the disputed islands, which they said were “stolen” by Japan, and accused the US of favoring Tokyo.
“If Americans stopped throwing their weight behind Japan, the Japanese would back away,” said the China Unification party spokesman, who declined to give his name.
Ma has said Taipei has no intention to work with Beijing on the issue.
Additional reporting by AFP
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
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
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