Leaders from diplomatic allies Paraguay and the Marshall Islands on Tuesday spoke in support of Taiwan’s inclusion in the UN at the General Debate of the world body’s General Assembly in New York City, arguing that Taiwanese deserve equal treatment.
The presidents of the two nation delivered speeches on the first day of the assembly, which opened on Tuesday and continues through Monday next week.
Paraguayan President Mario Abdo Benitez and Marshallese President Hilda Heine spoke up for Taiwan’s bid to be included in the UN.
“My country supports Taiwan’s legitimate request to be included in the UN system and believes that this country can contribute a great deal to its work,” Abdo Benitez said in his remarks.
Abdo Benitez, who was inaugurated last month, said that Taiwan’s inclusion in the UN should be granted based on the UN’s principle of universality.
Heine made a similar appeal in her address, saying that her nation supports recognition of Taiwan’s meaningful participation within the UN system, including programs and agencies such as the WHO, the International Civil Aviation Organization and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
“The people of Taiwan deserve equal treatment and the UN should resolve the serious issue of Taiwan’s 23 million people being excluded from the UN system — an issue we believe is not addressed in UN General Assembly Resolution 2758,” Heine said.
Adopted in 1971, UN Resolution 2758 recognized the People’s Republic of China as the only lawful representative of China to the UN and expelled “the representatives of Chiang Kai-shek [蔣介石] from the place which they unlawfully occupied at the United Nations and in all the organizations related to it.”
Advocates for Taiwan’s UN membership bid say that the resolution only addresses the representation of “China” at the UN, not Taiwan.
Heine said Taiwan has been implementing the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, and has released a national review of its own initiative.
“[Taiwan] has the capacity to contribute to a wide range of UN programs relevant to global progress. Diseases like tuberculosis know no boundaries and Taiwan has brought its policy framework in line with global efforts,” she said.
Taiwan has served as a partner to the Marshall Islands in addressing non-communicable diseases, Heine said, adding that blocking Taiwan’s participation “does not benefit global human welfare.”
Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Andrew Lee (李憲章) thanked the two allies for speaking up for Taiwan’s 23 million people at the assembly.
A signaling system malfunction disrupted high-speed rail (HSR) services beginning at 8am today, with trains temporarily reduced to three northbound and three southbound trains per hour as authorities conduct inspections. The malfunction occurred on a section of track in Miaoli County during pre-operation checks early this morning, forcing northbound and southbound trains to use a single track, the HSR operator said. The regular schedule has been replaced with three hourly trains offering only nonreserved seating in each direction, stopping at every station, it said, adding that business class cars would still have reserved seating. Departures from terminal stations are scheduled at the top
DRONE CENTRAL: Taiwan aims to become Asia’s democratic hub for drones, with most exports focused on high-quality military-grade models, an official said Taiwan’s drone industry is expected to expand significantly by 2030, producing 100,000 units per month and exporting half of them, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday. Current drone production capacity is about 15,000 units per month, but the industry can quickly scale up as demand increases, Industrial Development Administration Director-General Chiou Chyou-huey (邱求慧) told a news conference in Taipei. Taiwan’s drone output grew 2.5-fold last year to NT$12.9 billion (US$408.3 million) under a government program to develop the uncrewed vehicle sector, he said. The Executive Yuan in October last year approved plans to invest NT$44.2 billion into domestic production of uncrewed aerial
VERBOSE VESSELS: A CGA cutter and a China Coast Guard exchanged verbal barbs for more than a day in Taiwanese-controlled waters before the Chinese vessel left The Taiwanese and Chinese coast guards had a standoff near the strategically located Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島) in the north of the South China Sea, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said yesterday. The two sides engaged in intense radio exchanges over sovereignty claims during the 33-hour standoff. China Coast Guard vessel 3501 eventually left the restricted waters, 26.6 nautical miles (49.2km) west of the Pratas Islands, at 5pm yesterday, the CGA said. Lying approximately between southern Taiwan and Hong Kong, the Taiwan-controlled Pratas are seen by some security experts as vulnerable to Chinese attack due to their distance — more than
WARNING: China should stop engaging in actions that undermine regional peace and stability, as it would only build resentment among people across the Strait, the CGA said China has deployed more than 100 navy, coast guard and other vessels in waters from the Yellow Sea to the South China Sea and the western Pacific since US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) met in Beijing, National Security Council Secretary-General Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said yesterday. “In this part of the world, #China is the one & only PROBLEM wrecking the #StatusQuo & threatening regional peace & stability,” Wu wrote on X. In a separate post, he said Beijing was coercing Taiwan’s maritime domain, calling it illegal and provocative, after the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) expelled a
RSS