Premier William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for a new cross-strait development plan, while urging Beijing to ease hostility toward Taipei and refrain from supporting specific groups in Taiwan.
During a plenary session of the legislature, Lai wished the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) success at its 19th National Congress, which is to begin today, while calling on Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to adjust his strategy toward Taiwan.
“Beijing has tried to isolate Taiwan from the international community and divide Taiwanese society, and it has even supported specific groups, which, frankly speaking, is asking the wrong man for the job and is unhelpful for peaceful cross-strait development,” Lai said.
Photo: CNA
Lai was referring to a disturbance caused by pro-unification parties and groups allegedly linked to organized crime and having received funding from Beijing.
“Following the 19th National Congress, President Xi should properly assess past cross-strait interactions and continue mutually beneficial exchanges while adjusting ineffective and counterproductive moves,” Lai said.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lu Yu-ling (呂玉玲) asked if Lai’s insistence on Taiwanese independence could provoke a response from Beijing, to which Lai said that sincerity and honesty prevent misunderstanding.
Lai, in his first legislative interpellation session on Sept. 26, reaffirmed his pro-independence stance, saying he is a “pragmatic independence politician.”
Meanwhile, China’s military activities have decreased and there is no apparent change to its foreign policies ahead of the congress, the Cabinet said.
Lu asked if China had made any unusual military arrangements ahead of the congress, to which Lai said there was a personnel reshuffle and the Cabinet had a good grasp of the situation, but refused to comment further.
Minister of National Defense Feng Shih-kuan (馮世寬) said that Beijing’s frequent military activities around Taiwan have relented since China’s National Day holidays, due in part to weather conditions and the long weekend.
There is no sign of any aggressive military arrangements, suggesting that Beijing’s attitude has eased, Feng said.
On the diplomatic front, Taiwan’s relations with its diplomatic allies are stable, Minister of Foreign Affairs David Lee (李大維) said.
“There has always been a tug-of-war with China in foreign relations. It started long before May 20 last year [when President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) was inaugurated]. It has always been like this. Sometimes China exerts more pressure, but it is relatively stable now,” Lee said.
Meanwhile, Lai said that Taiwan would interact with China on the principles of equality and mutual respect during the APEC summit, after KMT Legislator Lai Shyh-bao (賴士葆) questioned if Taiwan’s participation under the name “Chinese Taipei” might damage the nation’s dignity.
Citing Tsai’s statement that her administration is willing to have friendly interactions with Beijing under the APEC framework, Lai said that it might be an affront to Taiwan’s sovereignty because the nation cannot join APEC as a state.
The public should support Tsai’s proposal, which seeks to achieve a common ground with Beijing to develop cross-strait relations on the right track, Lai said.
Taiwan and China are to interact as separate APEC members and economies, Lai said, avoiding the question if the interaction should be defined as a state-to-state.
People can preregister to receive their NT$10,000 (US$325) cash distributed from the central government on Nov. 5 after President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday signed the Special Budget for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience, the Executive Yuan told a news conference last night. The special budget, passed by the Legislative Yuan on Friday last week with a cash handout budget of NT$236 billion, was officially submitted to the Executive Yuan and the Presidential Office yesterday afternoon. People can register through the official Web site at https://10000.gov.tw to have the funds deposited into their bank accounts, withdraw the funds at automated teller
PEACE AND STABILITY: Maintaining the cross-strait ‘status quo’ has long been the government’s position, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Taiwan is committed to maintaining the cross-strait “status quo” and seeks no escalation of tensions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday, rebutting a Time magazine opinion piece that described President William Lai (賴清德) as a “reckless leader.” The article, titled “The US Must Beware of Taiwan’s Reckless Leader,” was written by Lyle Goldstein, director of the Asia Program at the Washington-based Defense Priorities think tank. Goldstein wrote that Taiwan is “the world’s most dangerous flashpoint” amid ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He said that the situation in the Taiwan Strait has become less stable
CONCESSION: A Shin Kong official said that the firm was ‘willing to contribute’ to the nation, as the move would enable Nvidia Crop to build its headquarters in Taiwan Shin Kong Life Insurance Co (新光人壽) yesterday said it would relinquish land-use rights, or known as surface rights, for two plots in Taipei’s Beitou District (北投), paving the way for Nvidia Corp to expand its office footprint in Taiwan. The insurer said it made the decision “in the interest of the nation’s greater good” and would not seek compensation from taxpayers for potential future losses, calling the move a gesture to resolve a months-long impasse among the insurer, the Taipei City Government and the US chip giant. “The decision was made on the condition that the Taipei City Government reimburses the related
FRESH LOOK: A committee would gather expert and public input on the themes and visual motifs that would appear on the notes, the central bank governor said The central bank has launched a comprehensive redesign of New Taiwan dollar banknotes to enhance anti-counterfeiting measures, improve accessibility and align the bills with global sustainability standards, Governor Yang Chin-long (楊金龍) told a meeting of the legislature’s Finance Committee yesterday. The overhaul would affect all five denominations — NT$100, NT$200, NT$500, NT$1,000 and NT$2,000 notes — but not coins, Yang said. It would be the first major update to the banknotes in 24 years, as the current series, introduced in 2001, has remained in circulation amid rapid advances in printing technology and security standards. “Updating the notes is essential to safeguard the integrity
RSS