The government is trying to dissuade the EU from lifting its ban on arms sales to China, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Chairman Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said yesterday.
Addressing a meeting of the Taichung Chamber of Commerce, Wu said the government was concerned about the possibility of the EU lifting its arms embargo and has been actively lobbying the bloc through various channels to maintain the ban.
The EU imposed the arms embargo after the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre in which Beijing mobilized troops to crush a pro-democracy demonstration.
Wu said that the annual increase in China's military budget was exceeding its economic growth rate, and that it was gradually gaining the edge in the air and at sea.
Against this backdrop, Wu said, Taiwan must purchase advanced defensive weapons to maintain the military balance across the Taiwan Strait and deter any attack.
Since President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) May 20 inauguration, Wu said, the government has kept a low profile in handling cross-strait affairs and has made a great effort to improve bilateral ties. However, he said, Beijing has so far offered little goodwill in response.
Wu said that goodwill and reconciliation, active cooperation and a permanent peace remain the basic principles in the government's cross-strait policy.
"We look forward to defusing cross-strait tension and disputes through increased exchanges and consultations," Wu said, adding that the government's policy was to forge a framework of "peace and stability" for cross-strait interactions. Touching on the government's plan to restructure the Mainland Affairs Council, Wu said the agency would be upgraded, contrary to recent reports.
"The MAC's status and policymaking power will be upgraded after the change," Wu said.
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