Stating that Beijing's planned anti-secession law was the result of misjudging Taiwan's political situation, President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) yesterday said the law would only further the distance between the two sides of the Strait.
Chen, who is currently on the last leg of his visit to the South Pacific, made the remarks at a gathering with the Taiwanese press corps traveling with him.
"The anti-secession law is China's attempt to legalize its use of force against Taiwan," said Chen, adding, "the law is Beijing's attempt to unilaterally change the status quo and challenge the US' Taiwan Relations Act."
Referring to last month's legislative elections in which the pan-green camp failed to obtain a majority, Chen said this gave Beijing confidence in moving ahead with the anti-secession bill.
"The electoral result has nothing to do with the current political climate ... China misjudged it," Chen said, citing low voter turnout and alleged vote buying incidents as having affected the electoral result.
Stressing that there are differing opinions in Taiwan with regard to cross-strait relations, Chen said he wishes to establish a Committee for Cross-strait Peace and Development so that all people can openly discuss the matter.
Noting his push for constitutional reconstruction as an example, Chen said it has been criticized by China as an attempt to push for a direction toward de jure independence.
"There are misunderstandings on many things. Sometimes it is because [Beijing] deliberately misjudges issues," Chen said.
Freeing oneself, scrapping political scheming and casting aside ideological confrontation are the three guiding principles in Taiwan's efforts to achieve reconciliation and cooperation between its opposing political camps, he said.
"These three principles may also help normalize cross-strait relations," the president said.
Noting the launch of direct charter flight across the Strait during the Lunar New Year holidays, Chen said it had been a step forward in cross-strait reconciliation and rapprochement.
The takeoff of the direct charter flights indicated that both sides of the Strait can find ways around their differences, so long as they shelve political disputes and ideological differences, Chen said.
Even though the charter flights do not necessarily signal the establishment of full-fledged air links, Chen said they are least a good start in breaking the impasse in bilateral ties.
"As full-fledged flight links are a concern, nothing is impossible, as long as both side are sincere and Taiwan's national security is upheld," Chen said.
The president also said that he will not back away from his "three insistences" during his time in office.
The "three insistences" refer to Taiwan's insistence to pursue democracy, upholding a Taiwan identity and insisting that Taiwan become a normal, complete country.
Citing Japan's aspirations to join the UN Security Council, Chen said that "only when all Asian countries, including Taiwan, become normal countries will Japan then become fully integrated in the international community."
"While holding fast to our stance, we shall proceed pragmatically," the president said, adding that "things do not always proceed in a straight line."
In response to questions about who will take up the Straits Exchange Foundation's (SEF) chairmanship now that chairman Koo Chen-fu (辜振甫) has passed away, Chen said he would ponder the issue after Koo's funeral.
On the subject of Taiwan-US relations, when asked to comment on outgoing US Secretary of State Colin Powell's remarks about Taiwan last year concerning its sovereignty, Chen said "whether or not Taiwan is a sovereign country ... I think it should be a question answered by Taiwan's 23 million people, not other countries."
"Even if other countries do not recognize Taiwan as a sovereign nation nor have official diplomatic ties [with it], it doesn't change the fact the Taiwan is a sovereign country whose national title is Republic of China," Chen said.
Taiwanese scientists have engineered plants that can capture about 50 percent more carbon dioxide and produce more than twice as many seeds as unmodified plants, a breakthrough they hope could one day help mitigate global warming and grow more food staples such as rice. If applied to major food crops, the new system could cut carbon emissions and raise yields “without additional equipment or labor costs,” Academia Sinica researcher and lead author the study Lu Kuan-jen (呂冠箴) said. Academia Sinica president James Liao (廖俊智) said that as humans emit 9.6 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide compared with the 220 billion tonnes absorbed
The Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Wanda-Zhonghe Line is 81.7 percent complete, with public opening targeted for the end of 2027, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said today. Surrounding roads are to be open to the public by the end of next year, Hou said during an inspection of construction progress. The 9.5km line, featuring nine underground stations and one depot, is expected to connect Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall Station to Chukuang Station in New Taipei City’s Jhonghe District (中和). All 18 tunnels for the line are complete, while the main structures of the stations and depot are mostly finished, he
Taipei is to implement widespread road closures around Taipei 101 on Friday to make way for large crowds during the Double Ten National Day celebration, the Taipei Department of Transportation said. A four-minute fireworks display is to be launched from the skyscraper, along with a performance by 500 drones flying in formation above the nearby Nanshan A21 site, starting at 10pm. Vehicle restrictions would occur in phases, they said. From 5pm to 9pm, inner lanes of Songshou Road between Taipei City Hall and Taipei 101 are to be closed, with only the outer lanes remaining open. Between 9pm and 9:40pm, the section is
China’s plan to deploy a new hypersonic ballistic missile at a Chinese People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force (PLARF) base near Taiwan likely targets US airbases and ships in the western Pacific, but it would also present new threats to Taiwan, defense experts said. The New York Times — citing a US Department of Defense report from last year on China’s military power — on Monday reported in an article titled “The missiles threatening Taiwan” that China has stockpiled 3,500 missiles, 1.5 times more than four years earlier. Although it is unclear how many of those missiles were targeting Taiwan, the newspaper reported
RSS