Former vice president Vincent Siew (蕭萬長) yesterday expressed to Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) Taiwan’s intent to take part in the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) during a brief exchange of greetings, and Beijing is willing to improve contacts with Taiwan to discuss issues related to Taiwan’s possible participation, Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) said.
Wang made his remarks in response to a question from reporters after attending the opening of the Boao Forum for Asia in the southern Chinese province of Hainan.
Siew talked to Xi for less than a minute prior to the opening of the forum, in a stark departure from a previous instance that saw Xi sit down with Taiwan’s delegation for a closed-door meeting.
Photo: CNA
Xi walked into a room at 9:24am, shaking hands with each member of Taiwan’s delegation and posing for a group photograph.
Siew then walked over to Xi for a talk lasting about 45 seconds before Xi left the room at 9:27am.
Sources said that Xi nodded to Siew when Siew expressed Taiwan’s interests in the AIIB.
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office Director Zhang Zhijun (張志軍), who was present, later told reporters that Taiwan certainly has a chance to join the AIIB, but China has not yet received a formal request from the nation.
Zhang said he would listen to Taiwan’s views when he has a chance to talk to Siew.
Beijing is willing to improve contacts with Taiwan to discuss issues related to its possible inclusion in the AIIB, Wang said later.
Participants in the multilateral finance organization are required to meet certain standards and engage in certain negotiations, he added.
Separately, Russia announced its intention to join the regional development bank as well.
Russia’s RIA Novosti state news agency reported the nation’s participation.
“I’d like to inform you that Russian President Vladimir Putin has taken the decision that Russia will participate in the capital of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank ,” Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov said, the agency reported.
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