The meeting between the US President George W. Bush and the Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) at the White House on Thursday turned into a farce after interruptions and missteps marred what was supposed to be a well-orchestrated diplomatic ceremony, political observers said yesterday.
"It was a ridiculous and embarrassing situation for Hu. Beijing's hopes that Bush would strongly censure Taiwan during the meeting were totally shattered," said Cao Changqing (
Cao, who has been banned from returning to China, made the comments at a press conference held by the pro-independence Taiwan Advocates think tank to comment on the just-concluded Bush-Hu meeting and its implications for US-China-Taiwan relations.
Cao said the meeting was "entertaining and educational" as Hu was challenged by protestors, took sharp questions from reporters about democracy in China and faced Bush's unwillingness to make any adverse comments about Taiwan independence.
"The two leaders spoke about totally different things. Bush wanted the trade deficit and human rights issues in China to be discussed and had a soft touch on the Taiwan issue, while Hu only cared about denouncing Taiwan independence," Cao said.
Hu Ping (
Hu Ping noted that Hu Jintao sent a message to the US government that China was able to influence major US capitalists, after he met with Microsoft chairman Bill Gates and Boeing executives in Seattle and promised to buy more than 2,000 Boeing airplanes.
"The way that China challenges American capitalism made the US government take countermeasures to communicate its displeasure to China," Hu said.
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
More than half of the bamboo vipers captured in Tainan in the past few years were found in the city’s Sinhua District (新化), while other districts had smaller catches or none at all. Every year, Tainan captures about 6,000 snakes which have made their way into people’s homes. Of the six major venomous snakes in Taiwan, the cobra, the many-banded krait, the brown-spotted pit viper and the bamboo viper are the most frequently captured. The high concentration of bamboo vipers captured in Sinhua District is puzzling. Tainan Agriculture Bureau Forestry and Nature Conservation Division head Chu Chien-ming (朱健明) earlier this week said that the
The first bluefin tuna of the season, brought to shore in Pingtung County and weighing 190kg, was yesterday auctioned for NT$10,600 (US$333.5) per kilogram, setting a record high for the local market. The auction was held at the fish market in Donggang Fishing Harbor, where the Siaoliouciou Island-registered fishing vessel Fu Yu Ching No. 2 delivered the “Pingtung First Tuna” it had caught for bidding. Bidding was intense, and the tuna was ultimately jointly purchased by a local restaurant and a local company for NT$10,600 per kilogram — NT$300 ,more than last year — for a total of NT$2.014 million. The 67-year-old skipper
BREACH OF CONTRACT: The bus operators would seek compensation and have demanded that the manufacturer replace the chips with ones that meet regulations Two bus operators found to be using buses with China-made chips are to demand that the original manufacturers replace the systems and provide compensation for breach of contract, the Veterans Affairs Council said yesterday. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Michelle Lin (林楚茵) yesterday said that Da Nan Bus Co and Shin-Shin Bus Co Ltd have fielded a total of 82 buses that are using Chinese chips. The bus models were made by Tron-E, while the systems provider was CYE Electronics, Lin said. Lin alleged that the buses were using chips manufactured by Huawei subsidiary HiSilicon Co, which presents a national security risk if the
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