Former South Korean president Kim Young-sam said yesterday he looked forward to seeing enhanced cultural and commercial exchanges between Taiwan and South Korea.
Kim, who is currently on an eight-day visit at the invitation of President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), made the remarks while meeting with Kaohsiung Mayor Frank Hsieh (謝長庭) at city hall.
Despite a cooling-off in Taiwan-South Korea relations following Seoul's switching of diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing, which prompted Taipei to cut ties with Seoul in 1992, Kim said friendship between the two countries has gradually regained steam.
"I hope our two countries can continue to expand engagements and cooperation in various fields for mutual benefit," Kim said.
For his part, Hsieh said that throughout history, Taiwan and Korea have been bullied but they never bullied other countries. This similar background had contributed to the friendship between the two countries, Hsieh said.
He added that Kaohsiung had formed sister-city ties with South Korea's second-largest city, Busan, and maintained close exchanges with several other cities.
In the past, Hsieh said, Taiwanese people were not familiar with South Korea but thanks to the popularity of South Korean soap operas, Hsieh said, many Taiwanese people have become fascinated with the country.
Hsieh lauded Kim for his contributions to South Korea's democratic development, calling him South Korea's "Mr. Democracy."
Kim said South Korea had come a long way liberating its people from authoritarian rule and building up a liberal democracy.
"In the pursuit of democracy, I consistently fought against the armed forces with courage, self-confidence and perseverance," he added.
Noting that Taiwan's democratization process has been similar to that of South Korea, Hsieh said he had much to learn from Kim.
Later in the day, Kim toured Kaohsiung Harbor in the company of Deputy Mayor Yao Kao-chiao (姚高橋). Kim said he was impressed by the port facilities and by the harbor's outstanding geographic location and natural conditions that have helped make Kaohsiung into a busy deep-water port.
Kim arrived in Taipei on Monday on his fourth visit to the country.
In the past few days, he has met with Chen and other political heavyweights, as well as delivering a speech at National Chengchi University.
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan’s armed forces have established response protocols for a wide range of sudden contingencies, including the “Wan Chun Plan” to protect the head of state, the Ministry of Defense (MND) said today. After US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, concerns have been raised as to whether China would launch a similar “decapitation strike” on Taiwan. The armed forces regularly coordinate with relevant agencies and practice drills to ensure preparedness for a wide range of scenarios, Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) told reporters before a
RSS