The rest of the world should be more like Taiwan, former US House of Representatives speaker Paul Ryan said yesterday at an event at the American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) new facility in Taipei’s Neihu District (內湖) to mark 40 years of friendship between Taiwan and the US.
Ryan made the remarks at an afternoon banquet at the AIT compound, which is to officially open on May 6.
The US’ Taiwan Relations Act (TRA), enacted in 1979, was a rarity, as it had “absolute consensus” in Washington, he said.
PHOTO: CNA
“It is this deep, abiding friendship and bipartisanship that is a testament to the enduring friendship between our two countries,” Ryan said, adding that the anniversary of the passage of the TRA serves as a “picture-perfect display” of a wonderful foreign-policy achievement between Taipei and Washington.
The US could not ask for a better friend than Taiwan in its endeavor to carry out a strategy to ensure that freedom and openness flourish in the Indo-Pacific region, said Ryan, who served as House speaker from October 2015 to January.
What the US wants for the Indo-Pacific region is for it to be free, open, prosperous and innovative, and for the rest of the world to partner with the US in solving global problems, he said.
Photo: CNA
“In other words, we want the rest of the world to be more like Taiwan,” he said. “Taiwan actively uses its own experiences not only to help others, but to help others help themselves.”
“The world desperately needs more of Taiwan’s brand of leadership,” he said.
To celebrate the anniversary of the AIT’s establishment and the TRA’s enactment, AIT Director Brent Christensen said a special message of Taiwan-US friendship would be displayed on Taipei 101 to mark the milestone.
The message features a handshake symbolizing Taiwan-US ties and the display was to begin last night and would be shown for two more evenings, the AIT said.
AIT Chairman James Moriarty said in a speech that further progress across the many dimensions of the Taiwan-US partnership can be expected this year, including in the area of expanding people-to-people ties.
“In this regard, we welcome and look forward to exploring Taiwan’s interest in establishing preclearance operations at [Taiwan] Taoyuan International Airport,” Moriarty said.
According to US Customs and Border Protection, preclearance operations would allow US customs personnel to inspect travelers prior to boarding US-bound flights.
The US currently has 15 preclearance officials in six countries.
There is no firm timetable for the establishment of preclearance operations in Taiwan, as the process still requires more dialogue between the two sides, Moriarty told reporters after the opening ceremony at the banquet.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said that in today’s inter-connected world, it is vital that like-minded people move easily beyond their own borders.
“So we are ready, willing and able to work on including Taiwan in the US preclearance program to bring our people closer together,” Tsai said.
US Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson presented Tsai with a framed copy of a congratulatory resolution passed by the US Congress as part of Washington’s celebrations of the anniversary of the TRA’s implementation.
The event was also attended by Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮), Taiwan Representative to the US Stanley Kao (高碩泰), Minister of National Defense Yen De-fa (嚴德發) and former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), among others.
One of two tropical depressions that formed off Taiwan yesterday morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. The weather system is expected to move northwest as it builds momentum, possibly intensifying this weekend into a typhoon, which would be called Mitag, Lee said. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is forecast to approach the southeast of Taiwan on Monday next week and pass through the Bashi Channel
WARNING: People in coastal areas need to beware of heavy swells and strong winds, and those in mountainous areas should brace for heavy rain, the CWA said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday issued sea and land warnings for Typhoon Ragasa, forecasting that it would continue to intensify and affect the nation the most today and tomorrow. People in Hualien and Taitung counties, and mountainous areas in Yilan and Pingtung counties, should brace for damage caused by extremely heavy rain brought by the typhoon’s outer rim, as it was upgraded to a super typhoon yesterday morning, the CWA said. As of 5:30pm yesterday, the storm’s center was about 630km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving northwest at 21kph, and its maximum wind speed had reached
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said that it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Ragasa this morning and a land warning at night as it approached Taiwan. Ragasa intensified from a tropical storm into a typhoon at 8am yesterday, the CWA said, adding that at 2pm, it was about 1,110km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip. The typhoon was moving northwest at 13kph, with sustained winds of up to 119kph and gusts reaching 155kph, the CWA Web site showed. Forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said that Ragasa was projected to strengthen as it neared the Bashi Channel, with its 200km
PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENTS: Hualien and Taitung counties declared today a typhoon day, while schools and offices in parts of Kaohsiung and Pingtung counties are also to close Typhoon Ragasa was forecast to hit its peak strength and come closest to Taiwan from yesterday afternoon through today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Taiwan proper could be out of the typhoon’s radius by midday and the sea warning might be lifted tonight, it added. CWA senior weather specialist Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said that Ragasa’s radius had reached the Hengchun Peninsula by 11am yesterday and was expected to hit Taitung County and Kaohsiung by yesterday evening. Ragasa was forecast to move to Taiwan’s southern offshore areas last night and to its southwestern offshore areas early today, she added. As of 8pm last night,
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