Premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) told lawmakers yesterday that the government will maintain a friendly attitude toward China but will stay reserved when it comes to its relationship with the Chinese government because of Beijing's plans for an "anti-secession" law.
"Our friendly attitude will not change," he said. "However, moving forward has been put on hold. We will have to wait and see because of their recent announcement about establishing an anti-secession law."
Hsieh made the remarks during his first administrative report to the legislature as premier. Yesterday was the first time he had returned to the legislature since he was a legislator 10 years ago.
He said the government insists that the two sides must treat each other equally and peacefully if there are going to be talks.
"We want to solve our problems and we want to solve them harmoniously," he said.
In response to lawmakers' questions about direct links, Hsieh said that it is the Cabinet's policy to keep moving forward but the issue can only be approached if there are no concerns about national security.
"It's believed the anti-secession law will become an excuse for China to use military force to solve cross-strait problems. We have to wait and see how they are going to deal with this when the law is eventually established," he said.
In the meantime, Hsieh said his priority is to try to reignite the economy. So he will continue to help President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) negotiate and work together with the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) opponents, he said.
"We need cooperation instead of hatred, quarrels and unnecessary political attacks," he said.
Meanwhile, independent Legislator Lin Pin-kun (林炳坤), from Penghu, complained about Chen's meeting on Thursday with People First Party Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜). Lin said the agreement reached by Chen and Soong went against the DPP's Taiwan independence policy.
Hsieh said that it was merely a problem of different definitions.
Hsieh told lawmakers that "Republic of China" has already been "Taiwanized" so it is not a problem if the country calls itself the ROC or "Taiwan."
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Taiwan's Gold Apollo Co (金阿波羅通信) said today that the pagers used in detonations in Lebanon the day before were not made by it, but by a company called BAC which has a license to use its brand. At least nine people were killed and nearly 3,000 wounded when pagers used by Hezbollah members detonated simultaneously across Lebanon yesterday. Images of destroyed pagers analyzed by Reuters showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo. A senior Lebanese security source told Reuters that Hezbollah had ordered 5,000 pagers from Taiwan-based Gold Apollo. "The product was not
COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai