People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) yesterday said that President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) selecting him to be her special envoy at this year’s APEC leaders’ summit was a demonstration of her “maximum goodwill” to Beijing, acknowledging that he had communicated with China about the matter prior to the announcement of his appointment.
Soong made the remarks at a news conference at the Evergreen Laurel Hotel Taipei, where in March the PFP chairman had his first meeting with Tsai after her victory in the Jan. 16 presidential election.
“By appointing me, Tsai has shown a high level of goodwill. If Beijing cannot accept a person like me, how would there be any hope of peaceful cross-strait development?” Soong said.
Photo: Huang Yao-cheng, Taipei Times
Soong said Tsai asked him to represent her at the annual summit during a meeting at the Presidential Office on Aug. 4, but he did not accept the offer immediately due to the importance of the mission.
He decided to take up the challenge after careful deliberation, Soong said.
“The appointment fills me with a deep sense of responsibility. It is a mission rather than a job. This mission is not about personal glory, but the entrustment of a responsibility to present to the international community the achievements Taiwan has made in the past decades,” Soong said.
Asked whether Beijing was aware of Tsai’s decision before it was announced on Wednesday, Soong acknowledged that he had communicated with China, but declined to reveal any details.
As for how he plans to react if he meets Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) at the summit, which is to be held in Peru next month, Soong said the summit would serve as a good opportunity for him to meet with Xi.
“If we are able to have more interaction and get to know about each other better at an international event, we will be able to assuage misunderstanding and reach reconciliation,” Soong said.
However, Soong added that it was premature to say how any potential meeting with Xi would be conducted.
“We should not open the lid of a cooker before the rice is fully cooked,” he said.
Soong also shrugged off concerns about his and the president’s conflicting opinions about the so-called “1992 consensus,” saying that he is capable of separating his personal views and the mission entrusted to him by the government.
“Since I am going to represent the president, I will know how far to go and when to stop when it comes to cross-strait issues,” Soong said.
The “1992 consensus” refers to a tacit understanding between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Beijing that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
Former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) admitted to making up the term in 2000.
Tsai’s refusal to accept the “1992 consensus” has resulted in punitive measures from Beijing, including suspending official cross-strait communication mechanisms, squeezing Taiwan’s international space and reducing the number of Chinese tourists visiting Taiwan.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
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
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique