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.
Taiwanese scientists have engineered plants that can capture about 50 percent more carbon dioxide and produce more than twice as many seeds as unmodified plants, a breakthrough they hope could one day help mitigate global warming and grow more food staples such as rice. If applied to major food crops, the new system could cut carbon emissions and raise yields “without additional equipment or labor costs,” Academia Sinica researcher and lead author the study Lu Kuan-jen (呂冠箴) said. Academia Sinica president James Liao (廖俊智) said that as humans emit 9.6 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide compared with the 220 billion tonnes absorbed
The Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Wanda-Zhonghe Line is 81.7 percent complete, with public opening targeted for the end of 2027, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said today. Surrounding roads are to be open to the public by the end of next year, Hou said during an inspection of construction progress. The 9.5km line, featuring nine underground stations and one depot, is expected to connect Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall Station to Chukuang Station in New Taipei City’s Jhonghe District (中和). All 18 tunnels for the line are complete, while the main structures of the stations and depot are mostly finished, he
Taipei is to implement widespread road closures around Taipei 101 on Friday to make way for large crowds during the Double Ten National Day celebration, the Taipei Department of Transportation said. A four-minute fireworks display is to be launched from the skyscraper, along with a performance by 500 drones flying in formation above the nearby Nanshan A21 site, starting at 10pm. Vehicle restrictions would occur in phases, they said. From 5pm to 9pm, inner lanes of Songshou Road between Taipei City Hall and Taipei 101 are to be closed, with only the outer lanes remaining open. Between 9pm and 9:40pm, the section is
China’s plan to deploy a new hypersonic ballistic missile at a Chinese People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force (PLARF) base near Taiwan likely targets US airbases and ships in the western Pacific, but it would also present new threats to Taiwan, defense experts said. The New York Times — citing a US Department of Defense report from last year on China’s military power — on Monday reported in an article titled “The missiles threatening Taiwan” that China has stockpiled 3,500 missiles, 1.5 times more than four years earlier. Although it is unclear how many of those missiles were targeting Taiwan, the newspaper reported
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