US Secretary of State Colin Powell said the US is looking forward to "seeing" and "hearing" the inauguration speech of President Chen Shui-bian (
Powell made the remarks to the Taiwanese media after his meeting Thursday with Singaporean Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong (
His words came as Taipei-Washington relations have become strained over Chen's insistence on holding a referendum alongside the presidential election on March 20 and over his plan to write a new constitution in 2006 and implement it in 2008.
The two referendum questions -- whether to increase anti-missile defense in the face of missile threats by China, and whether to start dialogue with China on a framework for peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait -- failed because less than half of the nation's electorate cast votes on the referendum questions -- a legal requirement for passage.
Powell reaffirmed the US' "one-China" policy and expressed the hope that both sides of the strait will act prudently.
He said that Chen "is certainly aware of our policy with respect to China and Taiwan," adding that the US feels strongly "that our `one-China' policy based on the three Communiques and our Taiwan Relations Act ... has served as a foundation for stability and peace in the region for many years."
The US "would not like to see anything happen that will change such a situation," he said.
"We believe both sides should act with prudence, take no unilateral action. We have said that we do not support independence of Taiwan, so we look forward to seeing President Chen's inaugural speech," Powell said.
During his 2000 inaugural, Chen laid out his "five noes" pledge, which included pledges not to declare independence if Beijing does not use force and not to hold a referendum on the nation's status on independence or unification.
The brilliant blue waters, thick foliage and bucolic atmosphere on this seemingly idyllic archipelago deep in the Pacific Ocean belie the key role it now plays in a titanic geopolitical struggle. Palau is again on the front line as China, and the US and its allies prepare their forces in an intensifying contest for control over the Asia-Pacific region. The democratic nation of just 17,000 people hosts US-controlled airstrips and soon-to-be-completed radar installations that the US military describes as “critical” to monitoring vast swathes of water and airspace. It is also a key piece of the second island chain, a string of
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake that struck about 33km off the coast of Hualien City was the "main shock" in a series of quakes in the area, with aftershocks expected over the next three days, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Prior to the magnitude 5.9 quake shaking most of Taiwan at 6:53pm yesterday, six other earthquakes stronger than a magnitude of 4, starting with a magnitude 5.5 quake at 6:09pm, occurred in the area. CWA Seismological Center Director Wu Chien-fu (吳健富) confirmed that the quakes were all part of the same series and that the magnitude 5.5 temblor was
Taiwan will now have four additional national holidays after the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment today, which also made Labor Day a national holiday for all sectors. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) used their majority in the Legislative Yuan to pass the amendment to the Act on Implementing Memorial Days and State Holidays (紀念日及節日實施辦法), which the parties jointly proposed, in its third and final reading today. The legislature passed the bill to amend the act, which is currently enforced administratively, raising it to the legal level. The new legislation recognizes Confucius’ birthday on Sept. 28, the
The Central Weather Administration has issued a heat alert for southeastern Taiwan, warning of temperatures as high as 36°C today, while alerting some coastal areas of strong winds later in the day. Kaohsiung’s Neimen District (內門) and Pingtung County’s Neipu Township (內埔) are under an orange heat alert, which warns of temperatures as high as 36°C for three consecutive days, the CWA said, citing southwest winds. The heat would also extend to Tainan’s Nansi (楠西) and Yujing (玉井) districts, as well as Pingtung’s Gaoshu (高樹), Yanpu (鹽埔) and Majia (瑪家) townships, it said, forecasting highs of up to 36°C in those areas