The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday welcomed a White House statement calling on Beijing to find ways of reaching out to President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and his Cabinet, as Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) prepared for talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤).
Remarking that Washington has been following developments in the region very closely, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan said in a press conference on Wednesday that the US believes diplomacy is the only way to resolve the cross-strait dilemma.
Commenting on Lien's trip to China, McClellan said the White House hopes that "this is the start of Beijing finding new ways to reach out to President Chen and his Cabinet, because a long-term solution can only be found if Beijing negotiates with the duly elected leadership in Taiwan."
MAC Vice Chairman You Ying-lung (
You said China should engage in dialogue with the Taiwanese government as soon as possible so that cross-strait relations can be normalized.
"Governments on both sides of the Taiwan Strait have to be engaged in dialogues and negotiations in order to efficiently resolve issues that only governments have the power to address," You said.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Michel Lu (
"The US encourages both sides to start official talks and hopes that dialogues can bring peace and stability to the Taiwan Strait," Lu said.
The ministry hopes to see positive developments in cross-strait relations, said Lu, adding that political leaders should hold on to the principle of "maintaining national interests" when visiting China.
Taiwan's political party leaders should not break the law while meeting with Chinese leaders, Lu said.
Meanwhile, David Lee (
The WHA, the World Health Organization's (WHO) highest governing body, will take place from May 16 to 25 in Geneva. Taiwan will launch its ninth bid to enter the health body in the assembly. The US, WHO secretariat, Taipei and Beijing are negotiating [about Taiwan's participation in the WHO]. But Taipei and Beijing do not talk to each other directly, the diplomat said.
South Korean K-pop girl group Blackpink are to make Kaohsiung the first stop on their Asia tour when they perform at Kaohsiung National Stadium on Oct. 18 and 19, the event organizer said yesterday. The upcoming performances will also make Blackpink the first girl group ever to perform twice at the stadium. It will be the group’s third visit to Taiwan to stage a concert. The last time Blackpink held a concert in the city was in March 2023. Their first concert in Taiwan was on March 3, 2019, at NTSU Arena (Linkou Arena). The group’s 2022-2023 “Born Pink” tour set a
CPBL players, cheerleaders and officials pose at a news conference in Taipei yesterday announcing the upcoming All-Star Game. This year’s CPBL All-Star Weekend is to be held at the Taipei Dome on July 19 and 20.
The Taiwan High Court yesterday upheld a lower court’s decision that ruled in favor of former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) regarding the legitimacy of her doctoral degree. The issue surrounding Tsai’s academic credentials was raised by former political talk show host Dennis Peng (彭文正) in a Facebook post in June 2019, when Tsai was seeking re-election. Peng has repeatedly accused Tsai of never completing her doctoral dissertation to get a doctoral degree in law from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) in 1984. He subsequently filed a declaratory action charging that
The Hualien Branch of the High Court today sentenced the main suspect in the 2021 fatal derailment of the Taroko Express to 12 years and six months in jail in the second trial of the suspect for his role in Taiwan’s deadliest train crash. Lee Yi-hsiang (李義祥), the driver of a crane truck that fell onto the tracks and which the the Taiwan Railways Administration's (TRA) train crashed into in an accident that killed 49 people and injured 200, was sentenced to seven years and 10 months in the first trial by the Hualien District Court in 2022. Hoa Van Hao, a
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