The Consultative Committee of the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) called on China to dismantle the missiles it points at Taiwan as soon as possible and stop boycotting Taiwan’s participation in international organizations.
A recent consultative committee meeting of the MAC held on Wednesday said that, alongside the recent closer economic ties forged with China, the Taiwan government should also find ways to fight for Taiwan’s dignity and international space.
Taiwan should also urge China to take the initiative in showing its willingness to further improve bilateral relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, the committee said.
The committee members said China understands very well the feelings of Taiwanese, and in the interest of promoting interaction between the two sides, should remove the missiles it has aimed at Taiwan.
Reports have put the number of ballistic missiles deployed along China’s east coast and targeting Taiwan at about 1,300.
Turning to the recent launch of direct air and shipping links between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, some members of the committee said that the links were not a panacea for Taiwan’s economic woes.
In touting the recently improving economic cooperation between the two sides, the Taiwan government should emphasize that it is part of the process of normalizing bilateral cross-strait ties, the committee members said.
Resolve Differences
Meanwhile, the committee called on the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to find ways to resolve their differences and reach agreement on cross-strait policy, as meaningless debates and accusations between the two parties would neither win the public’s support nor serve the best interests of Taiwan.
The committee members urged the MAC not to be swayed by any particular party or interest group, as its role is to serve as a platform for communication and negotiations on cross-strait issues.
However, it is also the MAC’s role to promote and strengthen interaction between ruling and opposition parties and to formulate unbiased policies in the future, the committee said.
KMT-CCP
As for the just-concluded forum between the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party, the committee members said it was held in a period of transition and that the governing and opposition parties together with NGOs should discuss the future necessity of such a forum.
NGOs and academics could also be part of a non-official communication channel between the two sides of the strait, the committee said.
“China is preparing to invade Taiwan,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an exclusive interview with British media channel Sky News for a special report titled, “Is Taiwan ready for a Chinese invasion?” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today in a statement. The 25-minute-long special report by Helen Ann-Smith released yesterday saw Sky News travel to Penghu, Taoyuan and Taipei to discuss the possibility of a Chinese invasion and how Taiwan is preparing for an attack. The film observed emergency response drills, interviewed baseball fans at the Taipei Dome on their views of US President
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
ECONOMIC BENEFITS: The imports from Belize would replace those from Honduras, whose shrimp exports have dropped 67 percent since cutting ties in 2023 Maintaining ties with Taiwan has economic benefits, Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials said yesterday, citing the approval of frozen whiteleg shrimp imports from Belize by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an example. The FDA on Wednesday approved the tariff-free imports from Belize after the whiteleg shrimp passed the Systematic Inspection of Imported Food, which would continue to boost mutual trade, the ministry said. Taiwan’s annual consumption of whiteleg shrimps stands at 30,000 tonnes, far exceeding domestic production, the ministry said. Taiwan used to fill the gap by importing shrimps from Honduras, but purchases slumped after Tegucigalpa severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan
The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a southwestern extension of the Sanying MRT Line from New Taipei to Bade District (八德) in Taoyuan, with a goal of starting construction by late 2026. The 4.03-kilometer extension, featuring three new stations, will run from the current terminus at Yingtao Fude Station (LB12) in New Taipei City to Dannan Station (LB14), where it will connect with Taoyuan’s Green Line, New Taipei City Metro Corp said in a statement. This extension will follow the completion of core Sanying Line, a 14.29-kilometer medium-capacity system linking Tucheng (土城), Sansia (三峽)
RSS