In what analysts termed a forceful show of support for Taipei, Washington's top envoy to Taiwan Richard Bush yesterday sided with the Taiwanese government in its handling of the cross-strait impasse.
"It does not seem constructive for one side to set pre-conditions for a resumption of dialogue that the other side even suspects would be tantamount to conceding a fundamental issue before discussion begins," said Bush, chairman and managing director of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) during a talk at National Chengchi University yesterday.
China and Taiwan held historic talks in Singapore in April 1993 between leaders of two quasi-official bodies governing cross-strait relations. But Beijing suspended talks in 1995 after then president Lee Teng-hui's (
Beijing has set the so-called "one China" principle as a precondition for the resumption of cross-strait talks.
But President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) from the pro-independence DPP, has said Beijing's "one China" principle is too vague, refusing to accept it as a precondition for talks.
Analysts attending Bush's talk deemed his statement as a forceful show of support for Chen's reluctance to accept Beijing's preconditions.
"This is the strongest statement yet from the US side, as far as I can see, to put the blame on Beijing for the impasse in cross-strait talks," Joseph Wu (吳釗燮), a research fellow at the Institute of International Relations at National Chengchi University, told the Taipei Times.
The AIT chief also assured his audience that US President George W. Bush's visit to Beijing next month would not sacrifice Taiwan's interests.
"The purpose of the trip would be to consolidate our cooperation with China on areas where cooperation is possible, including countering terrorism. But I think there will also be a frank discussion on issues we disagree ... I don't think Taiwan's interests are going to be sacrificed in any way," Bush said.
He also said it's premature to predict whether Chinese Vice Premier Qian Qichen's (
"The US government welcomes any step that might lead to a reduction in cross-strait tensions. But each side of the Strait has to evaluate any proposals for resuming cross-strait dialogue. It's up to the two sides to decide that," Bush said.
"I think it's premature to make any predictions," Bush said when assessing prospects for resumption of cross-strait talks in the wake of Qian's remarks during a question and answer session after his talk.
Earlier in his talk on Taiwan-US ties, Bush described relations between the two sides as "good and getting better," adding: "I think one can argue that our ties are stronger now than at any time in the last fifty years."
He added that the US would not sacrifice Taiwan's interests for the sake of having a better relationship with China -- even in the wake of Beijing-Washington cooperation in countering terrorism.
He also expressed the US' gratitude for Taiwan's support in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, in terms of financial donations, measures adopted to heighten the protection of Americans in Taiwan and security at Taiwan's ports of entry, as well as monitoring financial flows, among others.
RSS