China was not consulted over the US’ decision to include Taiwan in the Visa Waiver Program (Visa Waiver Program ) on Tuesday, both the White House and the US Department of State have said.
“It did not from our perspective require any kind of special communication or interaction with Beijing,” a senior State Department official said.
A White House source said that while China knew in advance that the Visa Waiver Program announcement was to be made on Tuesday in Washington, the issue was never discussed with Beijing.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
White House spokesman Jay Carney stressed — in a clear reference to China — that including Taiwan in the program was not meant to send a “message” to any other country.
“It’s a logical development in the close security, economic and people-to-people relationship between the US and Taiwan,” he said.
“The Visa Waiver Program decision is consistent with our commitment to have robust unofficial relations with Taiwan,” the US State Department official said.
“So no, we did not engage with the Chinese government,” he said.
The Visa Waiver Program announcement — leaked on Monday — was officially announced on Tuesday in Washington at a US State Department conference on travel and tourism.
US Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano said: “Today’s announcement is a major step forward in our long-standing economic partnership with Taiwan. Taiwan’s participation in the Visa Waiver Program will not only stimulate tourism in the US, it will also enable us to work together to maintain the strictest security standards.”
In accordance with the Visa Waiver Program designation process, she said, the US Department of Homeland Security determined that Taiwan complies with key security and information-sharing requirements, such as enhanced law enforcement and security-related data sharing with the US; timely reporting of lost and stolen passports and the maintenance of high counterterrorism, law enforcement, border control, aviation and document security standards, she added.
Taiwan is joining 36 participants in the Visa Waiver Program, which permits visa-free travel to the US for eligible travelers visiting the US for 90 days or less for business or tourism.
“The number of tourists bound for the US is growing all the time,” US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said.
“In addition to trying to ease the way for Americans to travel, we have matched that commitment with trying to ease the way for foreigners to travel here,” she said.
US media said the decision was announced at the height of the US presidential election campaign and could be connected to US President Barack Obama’s political agenda to show that he can be tough on China.
“Taiwan’s inclusion in the Visa Waiver Program is long overdue,” House Foreign Affairs Committee Representative Howard Berman said.
“It is an appropriate designation and apt status for a country with whom we share such strong economic and cultural ties,” he said.
Berman concluded: “The free flow of Taiwanese visitors to our country will deepen the bond between the US and our democratic ally Taiwan.”
In Taipei, Minister of Foreign Affairs David Lin (林永樂) attributed the result to President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) “viable diplomacy,” saying the inclusion of Taiwan in the Visa Waiver Program will “bring great benefits” to US-Taiwan relations.
Lin said the ministry welcomed the US’ decision, adding that it signifies significant progress in elevating the nation’s image, enhancing Taiwan-US relations and contributing to the nation’s external relations handlings.
The progress will enable both countries to further enhance exchanges in trade and tourism, as well as culture and education areas, Lin said.
After having secured visa-waiver status, one of the most important tasks for Taiwan in advancing US-Taiwan relationships would be the resumption of negotiations under the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement platform, Lin said.
Bruce Linghu (令狐榮達), director-general of the ministry’s Department of North American Affairs, said the ministry will continue to seek visits to Taiwan by US Cabinet-level officials to consolidate cooperation in military and security areas.
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
FINAL COUNTDOWN: About 50,000 attended a pro-recall rally yesterday, while the KMT and the TPP plan to rally against the recall votes today Democracy activists, together with arts and education representatives, yesterday organized a motorcade, while thousands gathered on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei in the evening in support of tomorrow’s recall votes. Recall votes for 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers and suspended Hsinchu City mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) are to be held tomorrow, while recall votes for seven other KMT lawmakers are scheduled for Aug. 23. The afternoon motorcade was led by the Spring Breeze Culture and Arts Foundation, the Tyzen Hsiao Foundation and the Friends of Lee Teng-hui Association, and was joined by delegates from the Taiwan Statebuilding Party and the Taiwan Solidarity
Instead of threatening tariffs on Taiwan-made chips, the US should try to reinforce cooperation with Taiwan on semiconductor development to take on challenges from the People’s Republic of China (PRC), a Taiwanese think tank said. The administration of US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose across-the-board import duties of 32 percent on Taiwan-made goods and levy a separate tariff on semiconductors, which Taiwan is hoping to avoid. The Research Institute for Democracy, Society, and Emerging Technology (DSET), a National Science and Technology Council think tank, said that US efforts should focus on containing China’s semiconductor rise rather than impairing Taiwan. “Without
The National Museum of Taiwan Literature is next month to hold an exhibition in Osaka, Japan, showcasing the rich and unique history of Taiwanese folklore and literature. The exhibition, which is to run from Aug. 10 to Aug. 20 at the city’s Central Public Hall, is part of the “We Taiwan” at Expo 2025 series, highlighting Taiwan’s cultural ties with the international community, National Museum of Taiwan Literature director Chen Ying-fang (陳瑩芳) said. Folklore and literature, among Taiwan’s richest cultural heritages, naturally deserve a central place in the global dialogue, Chen said. Taiwan’s folklore would be immediately apparent at the entrance of the
RSS