Senior US officials have expressed grave concern to China over its proposed anti-secession legislation, Taiwanese lawmakers said Tuesday.
Legislators Sun Guo-hua (
Sun and Hsieh quoted State Department officials as having told them that Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage and Deputy National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley had conveyed US concern about Beijing's so-called anti-secession law while meeting with Chen Yunlin (
According to State Department officials, both Armitage and Hadley told Chen that the proposed anti-secession law would only escalate cross-strait tension and be counterproductive to cross-strait relations. They also told Chen that Taiwan would not accept such legislation.
Chen did not bring with him the content of Beijing's proposed anti-secession law, the State Department officials were quoted as having said.
"State Department officials think Beijing's reluctance to divulge the text of its draft anti-secession law probably shows that the content has not been finalized and that Chinese authorities might revise certain clauses in terms of reactions from various quarters," Sun said.
Sun said the US government is not expected to explicitly express its official stance on the anti-secession law until after the National People's Congress, China's rubber-stamp parliament, formally passes the legislation.
"The US officials also said they think the period of 2005 and 2006 is critical to cross-strait relations. They said they believe the period is a `window of opportunity' for cross-strait ties. Neither side of the Taiwan Strait should miss this opportunity. They said the two sides should conduct `quiet diplomacy' and hold direct, candid talks to resolve bilateral disputes," Sun said, adding that the US is willing to assist in pushing for cross-strait dialogue, but the responsibility for realizing it rests with Taiwan and China.
As for Taiwan's constitutional re-engineering plan, the State Department officials said they attach great importance to President Chen Shui-bian's (
"If Chen's administration upholds the `four noes' promise, they said the US government will tell Beijing that Taiwan's constitutional reform program will not have an adverse impact on cross-strait ties. As for Taiwan's plan to change its five-branch central government framework to a three-branch one, the US officials said they have no opinion," Sun said.
An increase in Taiwanese boats using China-made automatic identification systems (AIS) could confuse coast guards patrolling waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast and become a loophole in the national security system, sources familiar with the matter said yesterday. Taiwan ADIZ, a Facebook page created by enthusiasts who monitor Chinese military activities in airspace and waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast, on Saturday identified what seemed to be a Chinese cargo container ship near Penghu County. The Coast Guard Administration went to the location after receiving the tip and found that it was a Taiwanese yacht, which had a Chinese AIS installed. Similar instances had also
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
AMENDMENT: Contact with certain individuals in China, Hong Kong and Macau must be reported, and failure to comply could result in a prison sentence, the proposal stated The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) yesterday voted against a proposed bill by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers that would require elected officials to seek approval before visiting China. DPP Legislator Puma Shen’s (沈伯洋) proposed amendments to the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例), stipulate that contact with certain individuals in China, Hong Kong and Macau should be reported, while failure to comply would be punishable by prison sentences of up to three years, alongside a fine of NT$10 million (US$309,041). Fifty-six voted with the TPP in opposition
VIGILANCE: The military is paying close attention to actions that might damage peace and stability in the region, the deputy minister of national defense said The People’s Republic of China (PRC) might consider initiating a hack on Taiwanese networks on May 20, the day of the inauguration ceremony of president-elect William Lai (賴清德), sources familiar with cross-strait issues said. While US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s statement of the US expectation “that all sides will conduct themselves with restraint and prudence in the period ahead” would prevent military actions by China, Beijing could still try to sabotage Taiwan’s inauguration ceremony, the source said. China might gain access to the video screens outside of the Presidential Office Building and display embarrassing messages from Beijing, such as congratulating Lai