A senior US official has refused to say whether President Chen Shui-bian (
Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia Christopher Hill, when asked by reporters after an appearance before a congressional committee hearing, would not say whether Taiwan had responded to a State Department demand last Thursday for assurances that Chen's actions were not intended to change the cross-strait "status quo."
Demands
PHOTO: CNA
The department's demands were contained in a hastily issued statement in which it both expressed its conviction that Chen did not intend to change the status quo, and also asked him once again to assure Washington that that was his real intent.
The latter request followed what turned out to be erroneous reports that DPP officials said Chen had abolished the council and guidelines, rather than just mothballing them.
State Department spokesmen have mentioned Chen's actions and the cross-strait dialogue issue several times in the same breath over the past two weeks, but this was the clearest indication yet that the Washington feels that direct dialogue is the only answer to the actions by both sides that have rattled cross-strait relations in recent years.
"I don't want to characterize our view on assurances [from Chen]," Hill told reporters.
"What I want to emphasize is that we believe this is an issue that needs to be resolved through dialogue, and that both sides need to show restraint," he said.
In a reference to the so-called "Anti-Secession" Law that Beijing's National People's Congress approved last March, Hill said that "there is no role for any mention of non-peaceful means," the phrase the law used as a threat to invade Taiwan if it moves toward formal independence.
Hill called on both sides to "approach this not unilaterally but in a mutual effort at dialogue," adding "There is no room here for unilateral announcements or any threats of the use of force of any kind."
In his written testimony before the subcommittee, Hill called on Beijing to "engage in meaningful dialogue with Taiwan's democratically elected leaders in the near future."
It was not clear what he meant by the "near future," or whether he has any information that Beijing is willing to engage in talks any time soon.
Nor was there any indication that the administration of US President George W. Bush has been making any special effort to press Beijing into opening talks with Chen.
Hill told a reporter that he had "no new information" about whether China was willing to open talks with Chen's government, at least on the basis demanded by Taiwan and Washington, that is, without any conditions that they be based on the so-called "one China" principle.
Confidence
Meanwhile, Taiwan's de-facto ambassador to the US, David Lee (
He said he was "very surprised" by the State Department's statement last Thursday calling on Chen to explain his actions and assure Washington he does not intend to change the status quo.
While saying that differences remain between Washington and Taipei on the issue, Lee added that "in the past few days we have been trying to bridge the differences. I'm confident that we will sort out the issue in the near future," certainly well before Chinese President Hu Jintao (
"I don't think we have a deep gap between us," Lee told the Taipei Times. "I think both sides need to be more considerate with each other."
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
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