President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration condemned North Korea’s latest nuclear test yesterday.
The test drew severe condemnations from the international community, with both the South Korean and Japanese governments holding security meetings immediately afterward to formulate countermeasures.
In Taipei the government did not take any action until 3:25pm, when the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement denouncing the test and repeating calls by the international community for North Korea to forsake its nuclear ambitions.
“The Republic of China [ROC] government strongly condemns North Korea’s spate of recent provocative acts by launching a satellite and carrying out nuclear weapons tests … we solemnly urge North Korea to abide by concerned UN Security Council resolutions and refrain from acts that could jeopardize regional security, for the sake of peace, stability and prosperity of the Korean Peninsula as well as in the East Asian region,” the statement said.
While Executive Yuan spokesperson Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) said that Premier Sean Chen (陳冲) had been aware of North Korea’s plan to conduct a nuclear test, and that the foreign ministry and the Ministry of National Defense had mapped out countermeasures, the government’s slow response to the test caused a storm of criticism from netizens.
Some netizens said the Ma administration was indulging in Lunar New Year festivities when neighboring countries were busy thinking up countermeasures, while others urged the government to take substantial measures rather than simply issuing a denunciation.
Meanwhile, Democratic Progressive Party Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) posted a message on his Facebook page urging the administration not to let down its guard just because North Korea’s latest nuclear test came during a holiday period.
The government should pay close attention to the evolving situation and cooperate with neighboring counties to maintain stability and prosperity in the region, Su said.
The nuclear test can do nothing to help North Korea develop its country and can only deepen the international community’s distrust of its regime, Su said.
He said that the incident highlighted the importance of his recent initiative that countries in the region which share common values should form a “democratic alliance” to strengthen cooperation with each other.
Additional reporting by Shih Hsiu-chuan
NO HUMAN ERROR: After the incident, the Coast Guard Administration said it would obtain uncrewed aerial vehicles and vessels to boost its detection capacity Authorities would improve border control to prevent unlawful entry into Taiwan’s waters and safeguard national security, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday after a Chinese man reached the nation’s coast on an inflatable boat, saying he “defected to freedom.” The man was found on a rubber boat when he was about to set foot on Taiwan at the estuary of Houkeng River (後坑溪) near Taiping Borough (太平) in New Taipei City’s Linkou District (林口), authorities said. The Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) northern branch said it received a report at 6:30am yesterday morning from the New Taipei City Fire Department about a
IN BEIJING’S FAVOR: A China Coast Guard spokesperson said that the Chinese maritime police would continue to carry out law enforcement activities in waters it claims The Philippines withdrew its coast guard vessel from a South China Sea shoal that has recently been at the center of tensions with Beijing. BRP Teresa Magbanua “was compelled to return to port” from Sabina Shoal (Xianbin Shoal, 仙濱暗沙) due to bad weather, depleted supplies and the need to evacuate personnel requiring medical care, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesman Jay Tarriela said yesterday in a post on X. The Philippine vessel “will be in tiptop shape to resume her mission” after it has been resupplied and repaired, Philippine Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, who heads the nation’s maritime council, said
CHINA POLICY: At the seventh US-EU Dialogue on China, the two sides issued strong support for Taiwan and condemned China’s actions in the South China Sea The US and EU issued a joint statement on Wednesday supporting Taiwan’s international participation, notably omitting the “one China” policy in a departure from previous similar statements, following high-level talks on China and the Indo-Pacific region. The statement also urged China to show restraint in the Taiwan Strait. US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and European External Action Service Secretary-General Stefano Sannino cochaired the seventh US-EU Dialogue on China and the sixth US-EU Indo-Pacific Consultations from Monday to Tuesday. Since the Indo-Pacific consultations were launched in 2021, references to the “one China” policy have appeared in every statement apart from the
More than 500 people on Saturday marched in New York in support of Taiwan’s entry to the UN, significantly more people than previous years. The march, coinciding with the ongoing 79th session of the UN General Assembly, comes close on the heels of growing international discourse regarding the meaning of UN Resolution 2758. Resolution 2758, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971, recognizes the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the “only lawful representative of China.” It resulted in the Republic of China (ROC) losing its seat at the UN to the PRC. Taiwan has since been excluded from