Legislators plan to make Middle East peace pilgrimage

Against a backdrop of strained relations in the Middle East, legislators and veteran watchers of the region are set to visit Israel and Jordan next week as part of an effort to strengthen Taiwan's ties with the region, legislators said yesterday.

The group, headed by the Legislative Yuan's Foreign and Overseas Chinese Affairs Committee, are scheduled to begin an eight-day trip to Israel and Jordan on Jan. 4 under the banner of so-called "parliamentarian diplomacy," legislators said.

"In view of the current difficulty in conducting government-to-government relations between Taiwan and these Middle East countries that do not recognize Taiwan, we hope that at least this diplomatic venue can help enhance bilateral ties," said KMT Legislator Kwan Yuk-noan (關沃暖).

Jason Hu (胡志強), a KMT spokesman and former foreign minister, and Antonio Chiang (江春男), deputy secretary-general of the National Security Council, were invited by lawmakers to join the trip in their capacity as "councilors" in view of their familiarity with the region, lawmakers said.

"Hu has maintained good ties with the Jordanian royal family. He even made a secret trip to Jordan when he was the foreign minister. Chiang has visited Israel many times in the past when he was a journalist and has a keen interest in Middle East affairs," the KMT's Shang-ren Lee(李先仁) said.

But neither Hu nor Chiang could be contacted yesterday to confirm whether they would join the group on the trip.

In an interview with the Media Watch (目擊者) bimonthly magazine issued in November, Chiang said in his current capacity he could help strengthen Taiwan's ties with countries that do not have diplomatic relations with the nation, "such as Israel."

The recent violence between Israelis and Palestinians is expected to be one of the key talking points, legislators said.

In addition to Lee and Kwan, the group will also include Trong Chai (蔡同榮), Shih Ming-te (施明德) and Yen Ching-fu (顏錦福) from the DPP, as well as the KMT's Douglas Hung (洪讀), Hung Chao-nan (洪昭男), Fan Yang-shang (范揚盛) and Yang Tzuo-chow (楊作洲).