The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) and Taiwan's representative office in Singapore said yesterday they had no idea whether Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) met with Chinese officials during his visit to Singapore.
Lien, who visited Singapore several times when he was the vice president and premier, could have asked the Taipei Representative Office in Singapore to help arrange his visit. The diplomatic privilege is granted to former leaders of the country.
However, according to a Taiwanese government representative in Singapore, the KMT and the Singaporean government planned Lien's two-day trip. The KMT did not consult the representative office in Singapore about Lien's visit.
"It is inconvenient for us to intervene in [Lien's trip]. We know the KMT and the Singaporean side arranged the visit," the representative said.
Michel Lu (
"We are happy to see the success of unofficial exchanges," he said.
The MAC said it had no information about whether Lien met with the Chinese communist officials in Singapore, but noted that KMT officials denied reports of Lien's contact with the Chinese government.
KMT Legislator Su Chi (
Lien and Singaporean leaders are "familiar friends," said Su, a former deputy secretary-general of the Presidential Office. "I don't think his trip to Singapore had anything to do with his planned trip to China. The Singaporean visit was scheduled long time ago."
MAC Chairman Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said on Saturday that Lien, who is planning a trip to China, might break the law if he signs any agreement with Chinese leaders that involves Taiwan's sovereignty.
Wu said the government would not intervene in social exchanges between the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party. But he warned the KMT would be violating the law if it goes ahead and signs a "peace deal" with Beijing without the government's authorization.
In related news, Wang Dan (
Speaking at a press conference in Los Angeles, Wang said the KMT demanded truth and democracy in Taiwan but ignored China's abuses of human rights.
He challenged Lien to ask Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) to make moves toward democratization during his visit to China.
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