The statement China issued on Sunday demonstrates Beijing's positive intention to communicate with President Chen Shui-bian (
"China obviously put a lot of thought into the statement, because its seven main appeals are actually a reaction to President Chen's goodwill and proposals during the past four years," Lu said.
"I would like to define China's latest statement as a declaration of `peace or war,' and therefore, if we focus on Beijing's positive intention, we can find that `peace' is the common language that has been used by both sides," she said.
"At the end of the statement, China gives Taiwan two choices -- peace or war -- under the criteria set up by Beijing. However, to all Taiwanese people the issue is how to ensure their existence, development and dignity," Lu said.
The vice president had invited the media to a tea gathering at the Presidential Office yesterday, where she told reporters that she would like to believe that China's statement conveyed a certain amount of goodwill from Beijing's leaders.
"The statement echoed remarks by Chen that he would like to pursue peace. It states a willingness to develop peace jointly with the Taiwanese people," she said.
"However, we must also interpret it cautiously, because China's `peace' is based on the pre-condition that Taiwan has to admit being a part of the People's Republic of China, despite 23 million Taiwanese wanting peace so that we can continue developing democracy," Lu said.
She called on the media to rationally analyze the statement, instead of using it to develop a war of words.
"We should stop over-interpreting those tough words in the statement and start to value those parts of goodwill which display the new hope of cross-strait relations," she said.
Lu said the fact that Beijing issued this important statement at midnight, which was the first time it had done this, demonstrated how much emphasis it places on Chen's inauguration speech.
It also shows that China already accepts the result of the presidential election, she said.
Lu said that, in response to China's goodwill in attaching importance to Chen's appeals, the president's inauguration speech will formally express his goodwill in terms of peace.
She said that she had personally invited Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (
"However, it is regrettable that they both turned down the invitation. Li declined due to his health, and Lien just said that it was inconvenient," Lu said.
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
GLOBAL: Although Matsu has limited capacity for large numbers of domestic tourists, it would be a great high-end destination for international travelers, an official said Lienchiang County’s (Matsu) unique landscape and Cold War history give it great potential to be marketed as a destination for international travelers, Tourism Administration Director General Chen Yu-hsiu (陳玉秀) said at the weekend. Tourism officials traveled to the outlying island for the Matsu Biennial, an art festival that started on Friday to celebrate Matsu’s culture, history and landscape. Travelers to Matsu, which lies about 190km northwest of Taipei, must fly or take the state-run New Taima passenger ship. However, flights are often canceled during fog season from April to June. Chen spoke about her vision to promote Matsu as a tourist attraction in
PAWSITIVE IMPACT: A shop owner said that while he adopted cats to take care of rodents, they have also attracted younger visitors who also buy his dried goods In Taipei’s Dadaocheng (大稻埕), cats lounging in shops along Dihua Street do more than nap amid the scent of dried seafood. Many have become beloved fixtures who double as photography models, attracting visitors and helping boost sales in one of the capital’s most historic quarters. A recent photo contest featuring more than a dozen shop cats drew more than 2,200 submissions, turning everyday cat-spotting into a friendly competition that attracted amateur and professional photographers. “It’s rare to see cats standing, so when it suddenly did, it felt like a lucky cat,” said Sabrina Hsu (徐淳蔚), who won the NT$10,000 top prize in
STRIKE: Some travel agencies in Taiwan said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group tours to the country were proceeding as planned A planned strike by airport personnel in South Korea has not affected group tours to the country from Taiwan, travel agencies said yesterday. They added that they were closely monitoring the situation. Personnel at 15 airports, including Seoul’s Incheon and Gimpo airports, are to go on strike. They announced at a news conference on Tuesday that the strike would begin on Friday next week and continue until the Mid-Autumn Festival next month. Some travel agencies in Taiwan, including Cola Tour, Lion Travel, SET Tour and ezTravel, said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group
RSS