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MOFA noncommittal, but still preparing for UN bid

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is considering applying again for entry, but we are also evaluating under what circumstances we may not do so this year.” — Francisco Ou, minister of foreign affairs

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) remains noncommittal over this year’s UN bid but it is gearing up to pitch a proposal, Minister of Foreign Affairs Francisco Ou (歐鴻鍊) said Thurday.

“All possibilities are under evaluation,” Ou said while reporting to the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee on President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) recent visit to Central America.

Last September, Taiwan dropped its UN bid but asked the the global body to consider Taiwan’s participation in its specialized agencies.

“Basically, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is considering applying again for entry, but we are also evaluating under what circumstances we may not do so this year,” Ou said. “There are several options and we will make a decision after consultations with the National Security Council.”

MOFA will evaluate how to make a major gain while protecting the country’s dignity, he said.

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator John Chiang ( 蔣孝嚴 ) said that if Taiwan decided not to make a bid this year, the foreign ministry must produce a position paper to explain its reasons to the country’s diplomatic allies.

Meanwhile, noting that in the past the KMT had pushed for the “return” of the Republic of China (ROC) to the UN, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Yeh Yi-chin (葉宜津) said “refusing to pitch a bid means you have given up on the UN and abandoned the effort to fight for more international recognition for Taiwan.”

The ROC left the UN in 1971 ahead of the world body approving a membership application of the People’s Republic of China.
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