The five-day visit of former South Korean president Kim Young-sam to Taipei was clouded with confusion and misunderstanding yesterday. Nevertheless, the improvement of bilateral ties was still the focus of Kim's meeting with President Chen Shui-bian (
Kim cancelled his press conference scheduled for 3:30pm at the Grand Hotel yesterday after his delegation and the Presidential Office failed to map out the final wording of a written statement.
"The Presidential Office intended to insert a few words into our drafted press release while we wanted to keep it as simple as possible," said Kang Myeong-sang, director of the Institute of China Relations at Korea's Kyungnam University and a member of the 17-strong delegation.
"That [referring to the press conference] was only what we had hoped for. Whatever we do must be agreed by your Presidential Office," said Chung Jey-moon, a member of Korea's National Assembly from the Grand Nation Party, another member of the delegation.
The drafted statement urged the resumption of direct air links to take place as soon as possible "in order to enhance substantive ties between the two sides."
In the statement, both sides agreed that working-level negotiations between the two governments should commence in the near future.
Such negotiations would discuss substantive as well as technical matters related to the resumption of direct air links.
Kang and Chung denied a report in yesterday's Liberty Times that claimed that former president Lee Teng-hui (
"We haven't contacted him and he hasn't contacted us," said Chung. "We'd like to pay a visit but there is no arrangement."
Seoul severed ties with Taipei in August 1992 under then-president Roh Tae-woo as part of its policy to move closer to Beijing and Moscow so as to gain an upper hand in its relations with Pyongyang.
Eugune Chien (簡又新), deputy secretary-general to the president, also denied a Liberty Times report which alleged that Kim "apologized" to Chen for what he saw as the improper process leading up the severance of ties between the two countries.
Kim met Chen for a second round of bilateral talks yesterday morning, which was followed by a lunch banquet hosted by Chen at the Taipei Guest House. Kim met Chen four times during the past two days.
During the meeting yesterday morning, Chen reportedly said it was "brave" of Kim to visit Taiwan because of pressure from China.
Chung confirmed that Kim had sent prior notice to China's embassy in Seoul about his planned visit to Taipei.
The enhancement of bilateral ties included the restoration of annual meetings between economics ministers from the two sides, to "fight against pressure from China to some extent," as well as the improvement of economic ties, Chen said.
Chen also reiterated that three conditions must be met before direct air links can be resumed, sources said.
Taipei would accept the restoration of air links if Taiwan's "national dignity" is respected, and if "substantial benefits" and "parity" are guaranteed to both sides, Chen said.
Chen made clear the three conditions for the first time during his initial meeting with Kim on Thursday.
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
‘SECRETS’: While saying China would not attack during his presidency, Donald Trump declined to say how Washington would respond if Beijing were to take military action US President Donald Trump said that China would not take military action against Taiwan while he is president, as the Chinese leaders “know the consequences.” Trump made the statement during an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes program that aired on Sunday, a few days after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea. “He [Xi] has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘we would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in the interview. However, he repeatedly declined to say exactly how Washington would respond in
WARFARE: All sectors of society should recognize, unite, and collectively resist and condemn Beijing’s cross-border suppression, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said The number of Taiwanese detained because of legal affairs by Chinese authorities has tripled this year, as Beijing intensified its intimidation and division of Taiwanese by combining lawfare and cognitive warfare, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) made the statement in response to questions by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Puma Shen (沈柏洋) about the government’s response to counter Chinese public opinion warfare, lawfare and psychological warfare. Shen said he is also being investigated by China for promoting “Taiwanese independence.” He was referring to a report published on Tuesday last week by China’s state-run Xinhua news agency,
‘ADDITIONAL CONDITION’: Taiwan will work with like-minded countries to protect its right to participate in next year’s meeting, the foreign ministry said The US will “continue to press China for security arrangements and protocols that safeguard all participants when attending APEC meetings in China,” a US Department of State spokesperson said yesterday, after Beijing suggested that members must adhere to its “one China principle” to participate. “The United States insists on the full and equal participation of all APEC member economies — including Taiwan — consistent with APEC’s guidelines, rules and established practice, as affirmed by China in its offer to host in 2026,” the unnamed spokesperson said in response to media queries about China putting a “one China” principle condition on Taiwan’s
RSS