Legislators across party lines yesterday said new flight routes announced by China are testing the nation’s bottom line and that peace across the Taiwan Strait will be difficult to keep if the government does not confront Beijing head on over the matter.
On Monday, China announced via the International Civil Aviation Organization new commercial flight routes just to the west of the median line of the Taiwan Strait, an act said to pose risks to Taiwan’s air safety and defense.
While, the Ministry of National Defense and the Civil Aeronautics Administration on Tuesday took a firm stand against the move, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has made relatively soft remarks on it, merely calling it “unacceptable” and urging China to engage in further negotiations.
SOURCE: CAA
MAC Vice Minister Wu Mei-hung (吳美紅) yesterday said that the two sides should maintain friendly and positive interactions, and that cross-strait talks should continue.
Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) Legislator Chou Ni-an (周倪安) yesterday lambasted the council, saying its attitude is soft, since the routes should have been decided after sufficient communication between the two nations.
The council should make its objections plain, or it would be tantamount to forfeiting national sovereignty, Chou said.
Chou said the council should suspend the issuing of landing visas in Kinmen County for Chinese visitors and the “small three links” (三通) until cross-strait negotiations are held to deal with Beijing’s announcement.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lin Yu-fang (林郁方) said that with China carrying out reclamation projects in the South China Sea and having its military vessels sail through disputed waters to flex its military muscles and showcase its ambitions, it will become more difficult for the government to keep cross-strait peace if it does not demonstrate its strong discontent over the routes.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) said Beijing unilaterally established the new routes in the face of the President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) administration because it has become impatient with obstructions to cross-strait negotiations and the KMT’s drubbing in last year’s nine-in-one elections.
DPP Legislator Tsai Huang-liang (蔡煌瑯) criticized the council, accusing it of trying to avoid the problem.
Future cross-strait negotiations might be held under the “one China” regime if the government does not toughen up this time, Tsai said.
Meanwhile, TSU chairman Huang Kun-huei (黃昆輝) said China is pressing aggressively toward Taiwan, not only in terms of its missiles targeting the nation, but now in the civil aviation arena.
DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said during a meeting of the party’s Central Standing Committee that China’s action would have great impact on cross-strait flight safety, national security and sovereignty, adding that the move is extremely disrespectful to Taiwan and in violation of the spirit of the Convention on International Civil Aviation.
It also risks incurring changes to the cross-strait “status quo” and peace, Tsai Ing-wen added.
It is unacceptable to Taiwanese that while the Ma administration has been touting its efforts in cross-strait relations, it failed to see this coming, she said, adding that the DPP demands that the government lodge a firm protest with Beijing.
NATIONAL SECURITY THREAT: An official said that Guan Guan’s comments had gone beyond the threshold of free speech, as she advocated for the destruction of the ROC China-born media influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China content that threatens national security, the National Immigration Agency said yesterday. Guan Guan has said many controversial things in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” while expressing hope for expedited “reunification.” The agency received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification last year. After investigating, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and account for her actions. Guan Guan appeared as required,
A Vietnamese migrant worker yesterday won NT$12 million (US$379,627) on a Lunar New Year scratch card in Kaohsiung as part of Taiwan Lottery Co’s (台灣彩券) “NT$12 Million Grand Fortune” (1200萬大吉利) game. The man was the first top-prize winner of the new game launched on Jan. 6 to mark the Lunar New Year. Three Vietnamese migrant workers visited a Taiwan Lottery shop on Xinyue Street in Kaohsiung’s Gangshan District (崗山), a store representative said. The player bought multiple tickets and, after winning nothing, held the final lottery ticket in one hand and rubbed the store’s statue of the Maitreya Buddha’s belly with the other,
‘NATO-PLUS’: ‘Our strategic partners in the Indo-Pacific are facing increasing aggression by the Chinese Communist Party,’ US Representative Rob Wittman said The US House of Representatives on Monday released its version of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, which includes US$1.15 billion to support security cooperation with Taiwan. The omnibus act, covering US$1.2 trillion of spending, allocates US$1 billion for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative, as well as US$150 million for the replacement of defense articles and reimbursement of defense services provided to Taiwan. The fund allocations were based on the US National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal 2026 that was passed by the US Congress last month and authorized up to US$1 billion to the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency in support of the
CLASSIFIED BRIEFING: The ministry said the special budget focuses on building a comprehensive defense system and strengthening the domestic defense industry The Ministry of National Defense yesterday released information on seven categories of weapons systems to be procured under a stalled NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.57 billion) special defense budget, including precision artillery, long-range missiles, air defense anti-tank missiles and more than 200,000 uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs). The Executive Yuan approved a draft version of the budget on Nov. 27 last year and submitted it to the legislature for review. The legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee yesterday invited Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) to deliver a classified briefing and answer questions at a closed-door session. Koo said he hoped to provide lawmakers
RSS