The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday welcomed the White House’s statement that Taiwan is not a bargaining chip in its dealings with China, while the Presidential Office reiterated the government’s policy of establishing friendly relationships with the international community, including the US.
Speaking at a routine news conference at the ministry yesterday morning, Department of North American Affairs Deputy Director-General Hsu You-tien (徐佑典) said the ministry was happy to see the White House affirm Taiwan as a “close partner” of the US.
“The ministry welcomes the US statement, which affirms the partnership between the US and Taiwan. Forming concrete relations with Washington has always been a primary goal of the ministry,” Hsu said.
Photo: Lu I-hsuan, Taipei Times
Hsu also expressed appreciation for US President Barack Obama’s administration for underscoring the value and importance of the two countries’ partnership on different levels.
He was responding to remarks by White House press secretary Josh Earnest on Monday that “Taiwan is not a source of leverage, it’s a close partner of the United States,” while warning that disrupting the US’ long-standing “one China” policy could “have a disruptive effect on our ability to work with China where our interests align.”
Earnest’s comments came days after US president-elect Donald Trump questioned the necessity of Washington being bound by the “one China” policy in an interview with Fox News Sunday.
Asked about the possible development of future Taiwan-US ties, Hsu said all ongoing discussion on policy is hypothetical and “Taiwan will be attentive, but not panicked” over the discussions, adding that the ministry would continue to talk with Trump’s transition team and define Taipei’s expectations on bilateral relations.
The ministry’s attention is focused on whether the US intends to uphold the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA) and the “six assurances,” Hsu said.
However, the ministry could not define for the US what connotations are included under the “one China” policy, he said.
The “six assurances” refer to the guidelines announced by then-US president Ronald Reagan to Taiwan in 1982 that the US would not set a date for ending arms sales to Taiwan; would not consult Beijing on arms sales to Taiwan; would not pressure Taiwan to negotiate with China; would not change its position on Taiwanese sovereignty; would not revise the TRA; and would not mediate between Taipei and Beijing.
Meanwhile, Presidential Office spokesman Alex Huang (黃重諺) declined to “comment on various remarks [on the US’] foreign policy.”
“Taiwan’s foreign policy is clear: We intend to build solid and sustainable relations with the international community, including the US, and in turn allow Taiwan to play a more active role and make more contributions to global society,” he said.
Huang also reiterated the government’s commitment to maintaining good cross-strait relations while upholding the three core interests of the nation — maintaining a free and democratic nation, actively participating in the international community and maintaining regional peace and stability — which would not be affected by changes in the international environment.
Separately, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Lo Chih-cheng (羅致政) said that what is important is not the “one China” principle as dictated by China, but the TRA which regulates Taiwan-US interaction.
In contrast with the “one China” policy, which acknowledges that there might only be one state called China and hopes for a peaceful resolution, the “one China” principle states that both Taiwan and China are inalienable parts of a single “China,” with no mention of a method of resolution.
The “one China” policy is not only unfair to Taiwan, but is also a policy that imposes limitations on the US, he said.
Lo said he did not expect Trump to use Taiwan as a bargaining chip and any policy right now is not indicative of the Trump administration’s actions after he is inaugurated.
China will not make a substantial response until the Trump administration challenges the “one China” policy next year, Lo added.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus Deputy Secretary-General Lee Yan-hsiu (李彥秀) said that Trump’s statements show that he is a businessman first, cautioning President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) not to dwell on the one telephone call between the two on Dec.2.
Additional reporting by CNA
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is expected to start construction of its 1.4-nanometer chip manufacturing facilities at the Central Taiwan Science Park (CTSP, 中部科學園區) as early as October, the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) reported yesterday, citing the park administration. TSMC acquired land for the second phase of the park’s expansion in Taichung in June. Large cement, construction and facility engineering companies in central Taiwan have reportedly been receiving bids for TSMC-related projects, the report said. Supply-chain firms estimated that the business opportunities for engineering, equipment and materials supply, and back-end packaging and testing could reach as high as
CHAMPIONS: President Lai congratulated the players’ outstanding performance, cheering them for marking a new milestone in the nation’s baseball history Taiwan on Sunday won their first Little League Baseball World Series (LLBWS) title in 29 years, as Taipei’s Dong Yuan Elementary School defeated a team from Las Vegas 7-0 in the championship game in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania. It was Taiwan’s first championship in the annual tournament since 1996, ending a nearly three-decade drought. “It has been a very long time ... and we finally made it,” Taiwan manager Lai Min-nan (賴敏男) said after the game. Lai said he last managed a Dong Yuan team in at the South Williamsport in 2015, when they were eliminated after four games. “There is
Democratic nations should refrain from attending China’s upcoming large-scale military parade, which Beijing could use to sow discord among democracies, Mainland Affairs Council Deputy Minister Shen You-chung (沈有忠) said. China is scheduled to stage the parade on Wednesday next week to mark the 80th anniversary of Japan’s surrender in World War II. The event is expected to mobilize tens of thousands of participants and prominently showcase China’s military hardware. Speaking at a symposium in Taichung on Thursday, Shen said that Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) recently met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a visit to New Delhi.
FINANCES: The KMT plan to halt pension cuts could bankrupt the pension fund years earlier, undermining intergenerational fairness, a Ministry of Civil Service report said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus’ proposal to amend the law to halt pension cuts for civil servants, teachers and military personnel could accelerate the depletion of the Public Service Pension Fund by four to five years, a Ministry of Civil Service report said. Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) on Aug. 14 said that the Act Governing Civil Servants’ Retirement, Discharge and Pensions (公務人員退休資遣撫卹法) should be amended, adding that changes could begin as soon as after Saturday’s recall and referendum. In a written report to the Legislative Yuan, the ministry said that the fund already faces a severe imbalance between revenue
RSS