Vietnam must take “all measures required” to ensure the personal safety of Taiwanese in Vietnam, as well as the safety of their property, and offer appropriate compensation for losses caused to Taiwanese firms during recent protests, government officials said yesterday.
Following an intergovernmental meeting called by Vice Premier Mao Chi-kuo (毛治國) early yesterday morning, the Executive Yuan issued a statement saying that Vietnam should continue to deploy “adequate military and police officers” to protect Taiwanese and their businesses until the government is able to restore order in restive areas.
Mao demanded that Minister of Foreign Affairs David Lin (林永樂) again call in Vietnamese Representative to Taiwan Bui Trong Van, director of the Vietnam Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei, to lodge the government’s concerns over the recent anti-China protests in Vietnam that have damaged factories and facilities owned by Taiwanese investors.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
Lin talked to Bui for almost three hours in the morning, with Bui agreeing to appear at a press conference in the afternoon to address the issues in person.
In addition to expressing severe condemnation of the violent acts during his meeting with Bui, Lin said that he has made three demands of Vietnam — Vietnam apologizes to Taiwan; harshly punishes perpetrators at the earliest possible opportunity; and satisfies all claims for damages that its citizens have caused to Taiwanese firms.
Vietnam should look into the extent of damage caused to the Taiwanese facilities and establish a cooperative mechanism through which both governments can negotiate the issue, based on the investment protection agreement both sides signed in 1993, Lin said.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs will send a group of officials to Vietnam in the coming days to negotiate with their Vietnamese counterparts over compensation claims, he added.
Meanwhile, Lin said the ministry’s personnel in Vietnam would help resolve any problems that Taiwanese investors and their family member may encounter in Vietnam when they decide to return to Taiwan, including difficulties in booking flight tickets, preparing the necessary travel documents, or not having cash.
Earlier yesterday, Executive Yuan spokesperson Sun Lih-chyun (孫立群) said that the government would make sure that every Taiwanese in Vietnam who wants to return to Taiwan would be able to buy a flight ticket at a reasonable price.
In the past few days, the number of seats still available on flights from Vietnam exceeded the demand, Sun said.
“The government has conducted an estimate of the damages caused to Taiwanese investors during the protests and the result will be released tomorrow [Sunday],” Sun said.
“About 40 percent of the Taiwanese-owned businesses who were forced to shut down temporarily have resume operations yesterday,” Sun said.
GENSLER SURVEY: ‘Economic infrastructure is not enough. A city needs to inspire pride, offer moments of joy and foster a sense of belonging,’ the company said Taipei was named the city with the “highest staying power” in the world by US-based design and architecture firm Gensler. The Taiwanese capital earned the top spot among 65 cities across six continents with 64 percent of Taipei respondents in a survey of 33,000 people saying they wanted to stay in the city. Rounding out the top five were Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City (61 percent), Singapore (59 percent), Sydney (58 percent) and Berlin (51 percent). Sixth to 10th place went to Monterrey, Mexico; Munich, Germany; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Vancouver; and Seoul. Cities in the US were ranked separately, with Minneapolis first at
The Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association has cautioned Japanese travelers to be vigilant against pickpockets at several popular tourist spots in Taiwan, including Taipei’s night markets, the Yongkang Street area, Zhongshan MRT Station, and Jiufen (九份) in New Taipei City. The advisory, titled “Recent Development of Concerns,” was posted on the association’s Web site under its safety and emergency report section. It urges travelers to keep backpacks fully zipped and carried in front, with valuables placed at the bottom of the bag. Visitors are advised to be especially mindful of their belongings when taking photos or speaking on the phone, avoid storing wallets and
Scoot announced yesterday that starting in October, it would increase flights between Taipei and Japan’s Narita airport and Hokkaido, and between Singapore and Taipei. The low-cost airline, a subsidiary of Singapore Airlines, also said it would launch flights to Chiang Rai in Thailand, Okinawa and Tokyo’s Haneda airport between December and March next year. Flights between Singapore and Chiang Rai would begin on Jan. 1, with five flights per week operated by an Embraer E190-E2 aircraft, Scoot said. Flights between Singapore and Okinawa would begin on Dec. 15, with three flights per week operated by Airbus A320 aircraft, the airline said. Services between Singapore
ENDORSING TAIWAN: Honduran presidential candidate Nasry Afura said that Honduras was ‘100 times better off’ when it was allied with Taipei The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday said it would explore the possibility of restoring diplomatic relations with Honduras based on the principle of maintaining national interests and dignity. The ministry made the remarks in response to reporters’ questions regarding an article titled: “Will Taiwan Regain a Diplomatic Ally?” published in The Diplomat on Saturday. The article said Honduras’ presidential election in November could offer Taiwan the chance to regain an ally, as multiple candidates have promoted re-establishing diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Honduras severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan in March 2023 in favor of Beijing, but since switching its diplomatic recognition,
RSS