Lee declines invite to give talk at US' National Press Club

Former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) has reportedly declined an invitation issued by the Washington-based National Press Club to deliver a speech during his forthcoming visit to the US because, his aide said, he has "a fixed itinerary that is hard to change."

"Lee's trip [to the US] is very simple by nature. As an ordinary citizen, he merely plans to attend a ceremony at his alma mater, Cornell University, as well as to visit his relatives and friends there," said Lee Ching-yi (李靜宜), an assistant to Lee. "Adding the talk in Washington, DC would involve other arrangements, which would complicate the journey."

The aide said the decision was made based on personal considerations, countering reports that Lee's declining the invitation was an attempt to save the US government from being pressured by Beijing.

Asked if the American Institute in Taiwan was involved in Lee's decision-making process, its spokesperson Susan Stahl said she knew nothing about the matter.

A Chinese-language newspaper reported yesterday that Lee had turned down the invitation through a letter he wrote on May 23.

The 78-year-old former president wrote in the letter that he was honored to have received the invitation, but could not accept it because his traveling plans were all settled. Lee said he wished to visit the US again soon, and hopefully would be able to give a talk at the National Press Club then.

Lee will depart on June 24 for a one-week trip, primarily to attend the inauguration ceremony of the Lee Teng-hui Institute for Scientific Research at Cornell University.

He will stop over in Los Angeles on both his outgoing and return journeys.