Minister of Foreign Affairs James Huang (
"Beijing will never give up its efforts to crush Taiwan at any cost," said Huang, responding to speculation that Beijing could ease its rhetoric against Taiwan ahead of elections to avoid drumming up sympathy for the Democratic Progressive Party.
Huang said Beijing would most likely step up its efforts to oppress Taiwan over the next few months and urged all ministry staffers to watch for Beijing's tricks.
Huang reiterated that the nation would not compete with China in a "dollar diplomacy" race to buy allies because it had no reason to engage in an impossible battle.
"There have been rumors that China has offered a US$6 billion financial package in exchange for Malawi's recognition. We could never afford to compete with such an amount. What we offer, however, is trust, dependability and unwavering friendship," he said, adding that the ministry was closely monitoring the situation in the African country.
Huang said that Taiwan-US ties remain "solid, stable, close and friendly," in spite of Washington's vocal opposition to Taiwan's planned referendum on joining the UN under the name "Taiwan."
"In the past seven and half years, the Taiwan-US relationship has been a roller coaster," he admitted, but stressed Taiwan had not made any "provocative" moves to unilaterally change the "status quo" as it is understood by Washington.
Anything Taiwan does to push along its democratic development will be labeled by its "foe" China as a "provocative maneuver towards de jure independence," Huang said.
Huang said that, in the past few years, the nation had amply demonstrated its wisdom and strength in making progress at home without shedding a drop of blood.
The US and other international players should have confidence in the nation's ability to do its bit to maintain cross-strait peace, he said.
Huang said that although this year had been a "worrisome and difficult" year for the ministry -- marred by Costa Rica's sudden switch of allegiance to China in June -- it was also a year for the ministry to explore new ways of engaging in diplomacy.
Under the leadership of President Chen Shui-bian (
Although both bids were rejected, they were nevertheless milestones in Taiwanese history, he said.
Another ministry accomplishment this year, Huang said, was the restoration of ties with St Lucia in April.
In the future, Taiwan will strive to contribute more to fighting global warming by helping its allies to develop alternative energy and solar power technology, he said.
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday said it had deployed patrol vessels to expel a China Coast Guard ship and a Chinese fishing boat near Pratas Island (Dongsha Island, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. The China Coast Guard vessel was 28 nautical miles (52km) northeast of Pratas at 6:15am on Thursday, approaching the island’s restricted waters, which extend 24 nautical miles from its shoreline, the CGA’s Dongsha-Nansha Branch said in a statement. The Tainan, a 2,000-tonne cutter, was deployed by the CGA to shadow the Chinese ship, which left the area at 2:39pm on Friday, the statement said. At 6:31pm on Friday,
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, would pose a steep challenge to Taiwan’s ability to defend itself against a full-scale invasion, a defense expert said yesterday. Institute of National Defense and Security Research analyst Chieh Chung (揭仲) made the comment hours after the PLAN confirmed the carrier recently passed through the Taiwan Strait to conduct “scientific research tests and training missions” in the South China Sea. China has two carriers in operation — the Liaoning and the Shandong — with the Fujian undergoing sea trials. Although the PLAN needs time to train the Fujian’s air wing and
STRIKE: Some travel agencies in Taiwan said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group tours to the country were proceeding as planned A planned strike by airport personnel in South Korea has not affected group tours to the country from Taiwan, travel agencies said yesterday. They added that they were closely monitoring the situation. Personnel at 15 airports, including Seoul’s Incheon and Gimpo airports, are to go on strike. They announced at a news conference on Tuesday that the strike would begin on Friday next week and continue until the Mid-Autumn Festival next month. Some travel agencies in Taiwan, including Cola Tour, Lion Travel, SET Tour and ezTravel, said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group
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