Taiwan will continue to do all it can to carry out a pledge to cooperate with the US in the "war against terror," a Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) spokesman said yesterday on the sixth anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the US.
Wang Chien-yeh (
FOREIGN AID
As a peace-loving country, Taiwan has participated in international relief and restoration operations in Afghanistan and Iraq over the years, contributing manpower and supplies for non-combat use, Wang said.
Wang said that as a member of the US Container Security Initiative (CSI) -- a project that was launched after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and designed to prevent terrorists from using sea containers destined for US ports -- Taiwan has been cooperating with the US on customs cargo container security checks and will continue to implement the anti-terrorism program.
`HIGH-RISK' CARGO
Under the CSI program, US customs inspectors are posted in signatory countries to conduct security checks on "high-risk" cargo destined for the US.
In return, US trade partners who have signed the program enjoy preferential customs clearance treatment in the US, the ministry said.
Speaking on the 23 South Korean Christian volunteers who were taken hostage by the Taliban in Afghanistan, Wang said that the incident was an example of why the ministry exercises caution in executing international aid programs and advises civic humanitarian groups such as the Buddhist Compassionate Relief Tzu Chi Foundation when they conduct relief missions in counties where violence is rampant.
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
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