The day US Navy vessels arrive in Kaohsiung would be the day the Chinese People’s Liberation Army “unifies” Taiwan by force, said Li Kexin (李克新), minister at the Chinese embassy in the US.
Li made the remarks on Friday at an explanatory session at the Chinese embassy in Washington about the Chinese Communist Party’s 19th National Congress and US President Donald Trump’s visit to China last month.
The Taiwan issue is still a challenge to US-China relations, Li said, adding that the US’ National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) passed by the US Congress — which enables mutual visits between Taiwanese and US naval vessels — violates the basic spirit of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the US and China.
Photo: Nadia Tsao, Taipei Times
As of Nov. 16, the NDAA for next fiscal year has been passed by both the US House of Representatives and the US Senate, and is awaiting Trump’s signature to become law.
Li said he went to the US Capitol and told US congressional staff that “I may have to thank you American friends,” adding that the officials asked what he meant with those words.
“I said: ‘Are you not going to send military vessels to Taiwan, to Kaohsiung...? If you send military vessels over there, [you] will activate the Anti-Secession Law [of China],” Li said on Friday.
Photo: EPA / DAVID CHANG
Li said he was not joking, adding that US military vessels need to obtain China’s approval to visit Shanghai and if they want to visit Taiwan, China will definitely disapprove.
Citing Taiwanese human rights advocate Lee Ming-che’s (李明哲) conviction by a Chinese court for “subversion of state power,” General Association of Chinese Culture deputy secretary-general Chang Tieh-chih (張鐵志) being denied entry to Hong Kong and the increased frequency of Chinese military aircraft flying around Taiwan, Taiwanese journalists in attendance asked Li whether the incidents suggest that China’s policy toward Taiwan has tightened.
Li said that they were all individual cases and do not need to be “over-analyzed.”
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) talk of “one China, 1992 consensus” (一個中國、 九 二共識) at the congress suggests that he has left the door open for cross-strait talks.
The “spiritual union” (心靈契合) Xi mentioned at the congress means that integration between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait is not a completely forceful one and that China wants Taiwanese to feel that “unification will let your feeling of a ‘small happiness’ (小確幸) turn into a ‘great happiness’ (大確幸),” Li said.
Peaceful unification is the highest goal, but China will not give up the option of unification by military force, Li said, adding that cross-strait relations are none of the US’ business and do not need to rely on the mediation of any other nation.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Taipei yesterday said although the government welcomes and appreciates the US Congress’ demonstration of goodwill and support for improved Taiwan-US security cooperation through legislation, it cannot speak on Washington’s behalf about how it intends to execute the Taiwan-friendly elements of the NDAA.
Reiterating the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration’s cross-strait stance, the ministry said the government is determined to push for peaceful and stable development of cross-strait ties and resolve differences through dialogue.
The Mainland Affairs Council also issued a statement highlighting the nation’s capability and determination to defend itself, adding that it would continue to reinforce communication with the US and its regional partners to ensure peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.
Meanwhile, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Culture and Communications Committee deputy director-general Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) said that the KMT would not tolerate any threats or finger-pointing aimed at the Republic of China’s homeland or the security of its people.
The DPP administration should face up to the importance of maintaining peaceful cross-strait relations and avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings that could cause irrepressible losses to Taiwan, he added.
Additional reporting by Stacy Hsu
The government is aiming to recruit 1,096 foreign English teachers and teaching assistants this year, the Ministry of Education said yesterday. The foreign teachers would work closely with elementary and junior-high instructors to create and teach courses, ministry official Tsai Yi-ching (蔡宜靜) said. Together, they would create an immersive language environment, helping to motivate students while enhancing the skills of local teachers, she said. The ministry has since 2021 been recruiting foreign teachers through the Taiwan Foreign English Teacher Program, which offers placement, salary, housing and other benefits to eligible foreign teachers. Two centers serving northern and southern Taiwan assist in recruiting and training
WIDE NET: Health officials said they are considering all possibilities, such as bongkrekic acid, while the city mayor said they have not ruled out the possibility of a malicious act of poisoning Two people who dined at a restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Department Store Xinyi A13 last week have died, while four are in intensive care, the Taipei Department of Health said yesterday. All of the outlets of Malaysian vegetarian restaurant franchise Polam Kopitiam have been ordered to close pending an investigation after 11 people became ill due to suspected food poisoning, city officials told a news conference in Taipei. The first fatality, a 39-year-old man who ate at the restaurant on Friday last week, died of kidney failure two days later at the city’s Mackay Memorial Hospital. A 66-year-old man who dined
‘CARRIER KILLERS’: The Tuo Chiang-class corvettes’ stealth capability means they have a radar cross-section as small as the size of a fishing boat, an analyst said President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday presided over a ceremony at Yilan County’s Suao Harbor (蘇澳港), where the navy took delivery of two indigenous Tuo Chiang-class corvettes. The corvettes, An Chiang (安江) and Wan Chiang (萬江), along with the introduction of the coast guard’s third and fourth 4,000-tonne cutters earlier this month, are a testament to Taiwan’s shipbuilding capability and signify the nation’s resolve to defend democracy and freedom, Tsai said. The vessels are also the last two of six Tuo Chiang-class corvettes ordered from Lungteh Shipbuilding Co (龍德造船) by the navy, Tsai said. The first Tuo Chiang-class vessel delivered was Ta Chiang (塔江)
RESTAURANT POISONING? Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang at a press conference last night said this was the first time bongkrekic acid was detected in Taiwan An autopsy discovered bongkrekic acid in a specimen collected from a person who died from food poisoning after dining at the Malaysian restaurant chain Polam Kopitiam, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said at a news conference last night. It was the first time bongkrekic acid was detected in Taiwan, Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝) said. The testing conducted by forensic specialists at National Taiwan University was facilitated after a hospital voluntarily offered standard samples it had in stock that are required to test for bongkrekic acid, he said. Wang told the news conference that testing would continue despite