The government's position on the president's decision to cease the functions of the National Unification Council (NUC) has been documented in a UN dossier circulated among each attending member state of the ongoing UN General Assembly, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday.
Four of Taiwan's diplomatic allies, Gambia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the Solomon Islands and Tuvalu on April 18 sent a joint letter to UN General Assembly President Jan Eliasson and UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, in which they said that their governments recognize Taiwan as an independent, sovereign state and that both sides of the Taiwan Strait are ruled by separate governments and are independent of each other.
Taiwan's position on ceasing the NUC is elucidated in Agenda Item 12 of the 60th session of the Assembly, under the category of Prevention of Armed Conflict.
The document, dated April 20, was sent to each UN member state attending the ongoing Assembly.
The statement issued by President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and his announcement on Feb. 27 that the functions of the NUC would cease were also attached to the letter.
The document said that the government's decision to cease the functioning of the NUC was in line with democratic principles, as the council's eventual goal of unification violated the principle that "sovereignty resides with people."
It also said that China's passage of the so-called "Anti-Secession" Law and its growing military threat towards Taiwan had altered the balance of power in the Taiwan Strait to China's advantage and strongly urged the UN to assume a proactive role in facilitating dialogue between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday expressed the government's gratitude to the four diplomatic allies for their help in relaying Taiwan's position on ceasing the NUC.
Ministry officials said that the move had explained Taiwan's position to the international community clearly and completely.
They added that it should also be effective in countering China's international smear campaign against Taiwan.
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