Minister of Foreign Affairs Mark Chen (陳唐山) said yesterday that he supports Japan's bid to become a permanent member of the UN Security Council.
The minister made the remarks after meeting with the new deputy representative to Japan, Chen Hung-chi (陳鴻基), who left for Tokyo yesterday and was to assume his new post the same day.
The minister said that during his recent visit to the US, he was asked about his view on Japan's quest for a Security Council permanent seat.
"I told my US hosts that I support Japan's bid and would be pleased to see Japan enter the Security Council as a permanent member," he said.
He said that Japan donates 20 percent of the annual UN budget and has had outstanding economic achievements over the past decades.
"The world should not continue to restrict Japan's role in international affairs due to its aggressive military action 60 years ago. I think the United Nations should work out a more reasonable Security Council organic framework with Japan, Germany, India and Brazil being given permanent seats," he said.
Regardless of the fact that Taiwan lost its UN seat in 1971, Chen said that, since the Republic of China had been a founding member of the world body, it could possibly help Japan's efforts to obtain a permanent seat, although the issue would need further study.
Meanwhile, Overseas Chinese Affairs Commission Chairwoman Chang Fu-mei (張富美) also expressed support for Japan's Security Council bid, as Tokyo has on many occasions spoken out in favor of Taiwan in the international arena, and the two countries have traditionally maintained close relations. Chang said Japan cast a "yes" vote in Taiwan's failed bid to join the World Health Assembly in May.
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
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
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
RSS