A former senior US official suggested Taiwan should work to strengthen its communication mechanism with high-ranking US officials, and not rely solely on the American Insititute in Taiwan (AIT) as the medium to convey messages to the US government, according to a Central News Agency (CNA) article yesterday.
That way, Washington can better understand the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government and its efforts to promote such issues as the special arms procurement budget bill, former deputy secretary of state Richard Armitage said, according to CNA.
Armitage made the remarks during a meeting with President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), who was in Miami en route to Latin America. Aside from Armitage, Chen also received visits from a number of former high-ranking US officials during his transit in Miami.
According to the CNA report, Armitage said that part of the reason Taiwan-US relations were not so smooth was because the Bush administration did not know the DPP government nor the party's culture very well.
Because the US government had been dealing with Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government in the past, it didn't understand that DPP officials mostly had a history of being activists, and are very different from KMT officials, Armitage was reported as saying during his meeting with Chen.
Given that the current Bush administration group of officials in charge of cross-strait affairs is new, Armitage suggested Taiwanese government officials, including national security staff members, should establish a diverse and frequent coordination system. Dependence on AIT as Taiwan's sole channel of communication would not be very helpful if Taiwan wanted to form closer ties with the US government.
He said that the Bush administration, immediately after taking office, passed the arms procurement case in 2001 in an attempt to stabilize cross-strait relations, because the was concerned about China's attitude toward Taiwan after the DPP administration came to power.
To expedite the passage of the arms procurement package in the Legislative Yuan, moving the items from the special budget into the general budget would be a good way, Armitage said.
Armitage stressed that the DPP government should explain its efforts to promote the arms procurement package to the US government, so that it understands DPP government's intention to maintain a peaceful cross-strait relationship.
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
COOLING OFF: Temperatures are expected to fall to lows of about 20°C on Sunday and possibly 18°C to 19°C next week, following a wave of northeasterly winds on Friday The Central Weather Administration (CWA) on Sunday forecast more rain and cooler temperatures for northern Taiwan this week, with the mercury dropping to lows of 18°C, as another wave of northeasterly winds sweeps across the country. The current northeasterly winds would continue to affect Taiwan through today, with precipitation peaking today, bringing increased rainfall to windward areas, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said. The weather system would weaken slightly tomorrow before another, stronger wave arrives on Friday, lasting into next week, Liu said. From yesterday to today, northern Taiwan can expect cool, wet weather, with lows of 22°C to 23°C in most areas,
Taiwan sweltered through its hottest October on record, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, the latest in a string of global temperature records. The main island endured its highest average temperature since 1950, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng said. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change contributes to ever more erratic weather patterns. Taiwan’s average temperature was 27.381°C as of Thursday, Liu said. Liu said the average could slip 0.1°C by the end of yesterday, but it would still be higher than the previous record of 27.009°C in 2016. "The temperature only started lowering around Oct. 18 or 19
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