Minister of Foreign Affairs Eugene Chien (簡又新) met with US Vice President Dick Cheney in private on Sunday on the sidelines of the 22nd American Enterprise Institute (AEI) World Forum in Beaver Creek, Colorado.
Chien confirmed that the meeting took place, but would not divulge any details regarding his talks with Cheney out of respect for his host and the sensitivity of the meeting.
Informed sources said Chien discussed Taiwan-US relations with Cheney and other matters of mutual concern. Taiwan Repres-entative to the US Chen Chien-jen (程建人) was also present at the meeting.
Chien had already met Cheney during the past three days on several occasions, but they had only shaken hands and chatted informally on those encounters.
Also, Chien held bilateral talks with US Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and government leaders of other countries on a broad range of issues of mutual interest.
Chin Jih-hsin (秦日新), director of the North American Affairs Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who was also attending the World Forum, said Chien has reaffirmed Taiwan's support for the global war on terrorism and reconstruction projects in Iraq and Afghanistan while meeting with US officials and congressional leaders.
This was the first time that Chien has attended the annual AEI World Forum since he assumed office in February last year. Chien said the meeting was fruitful and that he was delighted to see the ROC national flag hoisted along with those of other participating countries on major streets of Beaver Creek -- a popular mountain resort in Colorado -- and at the conference venue.
Chien left for New York on Sunday afternoon for his first visit there since assuming office. Sources said Chien will take advantage of the visit to seek US support for Taiwan's plan to hold a referendum on some public issues such as participation in the World Health Assembly and the fate of the nation's controversial Fourth Nuclear Power Plant.
Chien will tell American authorities that the planned referendum is mainly designed for citizens to express their opinions about selected policy issues which have nothing to do with Taiwan's future status, the sources said, adding that Chien is expected to assure the White House that the planned referendum will not violate President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) promise in his inaugural speech that there would be no promotion in a referendum on whether Taiwan should move toward independence or unification with China.
According to Chien, Douglas Paal, director of the Taipei Office of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) , expressed the US government's concern at a June 16 meeting with him and at a farewell party held a week earlier for the outgoing AIT Taipei deputy director.
Chien said the US government is worried that the situation might get out of control if Taiwan calls for an unprecedented referendum, which would probably have an adverse effect on cross-Taiwan Strait relations.
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
Travel agencies in Taiwan are working to secure alternative flights for travelers bound for New Zealand for the Lunar New Year holiday, as Air New Zealand workers are set to strike next week. The airline said that it has confirmed that the planned industrial action by its international wide-body cabin crew would go ahead on Thursday and Friday next week. While the Auckland-based carrier pledged to take reasonable measures to mitigate the impact of the workers’ strike, an Air New Zealand flight arriving at Taipei from Auckland on Thursday and another flight departing from Taipei for Auckland on Saturday would have to
RSS