The government has decided not to push its allies to submit a motion to the UN General Assembly next month for Taiwan to join the world body, a high-level government source said yesterday.
The decision was made to maintain a “moderate and reasonable” approach, after weighing different factors, the source said.
“The government has not submitted such a proposal since 2009. [Such a motion] is a double-edged sword and we must consider the costs and benefits, as well as internal and external factors,” said the source, who has first-hand knowledge of the matter.
An internal assessment suggests it would be more effective for Taiwan to gather international support by not seeking a membership motion and adhering to its usual “moderate and reasonable” advocating of the nation’s pragmatic, professional and constructive participation, the source said.
The Republic of China (ROC), a founding member of the UN, withdrew from the world body in October 1971 after the General Assembly adopted Resolution 2758, which recognized the People’s Republic of China as the lawful representative of China to the UN.
In 1993, the government launched what became an annual campaign to regain a UN seat. During former president Chen Shui-bian’s (陳水扁) administration, it sought to obtain UN membership under the name “Taiwan.”
The government shelved its UN bid after then-president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) took office in 2008.
Ma’s administration instead pursued Taiwan’s meaningful participation at UN-affiliated organizations, an approach President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has maintained since she took office on May 20, 2016.
The source said the government plans to issue three demands this year: that the UN addresses Taiwan’s exclusion from the UN, because its 23 million people should enjoy the same rights as the rest of the world; that the UN ends measures preventing ROC citizens from entering UN meetings and Taiwanese reporters from covering them; that the UN ensures Taiwan’s rights to participate in meetings and events related to the realization of its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in an equal and dignified manner.
To rally support for Taiwan’s cause, the government plans to ask its diplomatic allies to write a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres before the General Assembly opens on Sept. 18 and speak up for Taiwan during the UN General Debate from Sept. 25 to Oct. 1, the source said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is also producing a series of short films promoting Taiwan’s achievements in some of the areas covered by the UN’s 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs), the source said, including clean energy, national healthcare coverage and a circular economy.
“The plan is to show the world that Taiwan is an important partner for sustainable development,” the source added.
The ministry has scheduled a news conference for tomorrow to announce its UN campaign.
In related news, the Guatemala embassy in Taipei yesterday said its government would maintain its diplomatic ties with Taiwan.
“In this regard, Guatemala is working very well with the Republic of China; we have many projects in common of different nature, which we are concentrated in developing each of them,” the embassy said in response to media inquiries.
Its remarks came hours after Guatemalan Ambassador Olga Maria Aguja Zuniga met with Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Jose Maria Liu (劉德立) at the ministry amid rumors that the nation has been listed by the government as a high-risk ally.
A source familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Liu also met with Honduran Ambassador Rafael Fernando Sierra Quesada.
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday lavished US President Donald Trump with praise and vows of a “golden age” of ties on his visit to Tokyo, before inking a deal with Washington aimed at securing critical minerals. Takaichi — Japan’s first female prime minister — pulled out all the stops for Trump in her opening test on the international stage and even announced that she would nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize, the White House said. Trump has become increasingly focused on the Nobel since his return to power in January and claims to have ended several conflicts around the world,
GLOBAL PROJECT: Underseas cables ‘are the nervous system of democratic connectivity,’ which is under stress, Member of the European Parliament Rihards Kols said The government yesterday launched an initiative to promote global cooperation on improved security of undersea cables, following reported disruptions of such cables near Taiwan and around the world. The Management Initiative on International Undersea Cables aims to “bring together stakeholders, align standards, promote best practices and turn shared concerns into beneficial cooperation,” Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said at a seminar in Taipei. The project would be known as “RISK,” an acronym for risk mitigation, information sharing, systemic reform and knowledge building, he said at the seminar, titled “Taiwan-Europe Subsea Cable Security Cooperation Forum.” Taiwan sits at a vital junction on
LONG-HELD POSITION: Washington has repeatedly and clearly reiterated its support for Taiwan and its long-term policy, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio yesterday said that Taiwan should not be concerned about being used as a bargaining chip in the ongoing US-China trade talks. “I don’t think you’re going to see some trade deal where, if what people are worried about is, we’re going to get some trade deal or we’re going to get favorable treatment on trade in exchange for walking away from Taiwan,” Rubio told reporters aboard his airplane traveling between Israel and Qatar en route to Asia. “No one is contemplating that,” Reuters quoted Rubio as saying. A US Treasury spokesman yesterday told reporters
RSS