The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) welcomed yesterday the US Republican Party's support for Taiwan as outlined in the platform approved in the party's national convention in New York, but declined to comment on whether the US had urged China and Taiwan to call off the recently-canceled war games.
The platform pledged to defend Taiwan from any move by Beijing to forcibly unify it with China, stressing "all issues regarding Taiwan's future must be resolved peacefully and must be agreeable to the people of Taiwan."
It also vowed to oppose any unilateral change to the status quo across the Taiwan Strait and to support Taiwan's efforts to join the World Health Organization (WHO) and other international organizations.
"We welcome the US' support. In this year's World Health Assembly, the US not only spoke for us, but also voted for our bid to join the WHO. We have been actively working toward the goal [of entering the organization]," ministry spokesman Michel Lu (
The platform criticized China, which recently canceled its plan to hold joint-force military exercises on Dongshan Island, for seeking military capabilities that could threaten its neighbors and for failing to uphold its commitment to nuclear non-proliferation.
President Chen Shui-bian's (
"The drills on Dongshan simulated an invasion of Taiwan. They are not children's games. It is impossible that China canceled the war games for no reason," said Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Lee Wen-chung (
"Chen decided to call off this part of the Han Kuang exercises because China canceled the drills on Dongshan. He must have inside information [about the Chinese military exercises]," Lee said.
"Taiwan and China do not want a war. The cancelation of the military exercises is a move beneficial to people in both countries," he said.
"It is possible the US played a role in the matter," Lee said.
Lu declined to comment when asked whether the US pressured Taiwan and China to withdraw from the war games.
Although he recognized that there were differences between the Republican Party's and the Democratic Party's Taiwan policies, Lu nevertheless said the US government's foreign policy was likely to remain largely the same, no matter which party takes power.
Differing from the Republican Party platform's staunch support for Taiwan, the Democratic Party's campaign book -- launched last month -- failed even to endorse the Taiwan Relations Act that the US Congress passed in 1979.
The act states that the US should "resist any resort to force or other forms of coercion" should Taiwan be attacked and that it should provide arms "of a defensive nature" to Taiwan so that the latter can "maintain a self-sufficient defense capacity."
"There is continuity in the US government's foreign policy ... We share the US mainstream's judgment of values in the international community and recognize that Taiwan is of strategic interest to the US," Lu said.
People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) yesterday questioned Taiwan's decision to cancel a major live-fire drill in response to China's reported cancelation of its scheduled military exercises on Dongshan Island.
Noting that Beijing has not formally announced a cancellation of the military exercises, Soong said Taiwan cannot afford to miscalculate nor misjudge the military situation based on incomplete intelligence.
INCREASED CAPACITY: The flights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays would leave Singapore in the morning and Taipei in the afternoon Singapore Airlines is adding four supplementary flights to Taipei per week until May to meet increased tourist and business travel demand, the carrier said on Friday. The addition would raise the number of weekly flights it operates to Taipei to 18, Singapore Airlines Taiwan general manager Timothy Ouyang (歐陽漢源) said. The airline has recorded a steady rise in tourist and business travel to and from Taipei, and aims to provide more flexible travel arrangements for passengers, said Ouyang, who assumed the post in July last year. From now until Saturday next week, four additional flights would depart from Singapore on Monday, Wednesday, Friday
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday reported the return of large-scale Chinese air force activities after their unexplained absence for more than two weeks, which had prompted speculation regarding Beijing’s motives. China usually sends fighter jets, drones and other military aircraft around the nation on a daily basis. Interruptions to such routine are generally caused by bad weather. The Ministry of National Defense said it had detected 26 Chinese military aircraft in the Taiwan Strait over the previous 24 hours. It last reported that many aircraft on Feb. 25, when it spotted 30 aircraft, saying Beijing was carrying out another “joint combat
Taiwan successfully defended its women’s 540 kilogram title and won its first-ever men’s 640 kg title at the 2026 World Indoor Tug of War Championships in Taipei yesterday. In the women’s event, Taiwan’s eight-person squad reached the final following a round-robin preliminary round and semifinals featuring teams from Ukraine, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, the Basque Country and South Korea. In the finals, they swept the Basque team 2-0, giving the team composed mainly of National Taiwan Normal University students and graduates its second championship in a row, and its fourth in five years. Team captain
When Paraguayan opposition lawmaker Leidy Galeano returned from an all-expenses-paid tour of six Chinese cities late last year, she was convinced Paraguay risked missing out on major economic gains by sticking with longtime ally Taipei over Beijing — a message that participants on the trip heard repeatedly from Chinese officials. “Everything I saw there, I wanted for my country,” said Galeano, a member of the newly-formed Yo Creo party whose senior figures have spoken favorably about China. This trip and others like it — which people familiar with the visits said were at the invitation of the Chinese consulate in Sao Paulo
RSS