The US Department of State appears to be growing increasingly upset about the flying of the Republic of China (ROC) flag at a New Year’s Day ceremony at the Twin Oaks Estate in Washington last week.
“I think the issue is that it’s inconsistent with the spirit of our policy,” State Department spokesperson Jan Psaki said on Tuesday.
It was the second time this week that Psaki had condemned the incident at her daily press briefing.
On Monday, she said that raising the ROC flag at Twin Oaks — the historic residence of Taiwan’s representative in Washington — was “not consistent” with US policy.
However, when asked about Taipei’s reaction to her remarks on Tuesday, she went further, saying that flying the ROC flag “violated” a previous agreement and that the US was “disappointed.”
There is continuing confusion over just how Representative to the US Shen Lyu-shun (沈呂巡) informed Washington about the flag-raising ceremony, and exactly when he passed on information.
It is thought to have been the first time that Taiwan’s flag has been raised above Twin Oaks since the US switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing 36 years ago.
However, several sources now say that national flags were on display in October last year during the Double Ten National Day reception at Twin Oaks and that US officials in attendance did not complain.
Psaki seemed to be prepared for further questions on the issue as the Tuesday news conference got under way.
She was asked to comment on reports that Taipei had reached an “understanding” with Washington after the flag had been raised.
“I think I would just reiterate that it’s inconsistent with our policy and ‘not notified in advance’ means you didn’t know about it in advance, which seems consistent with what you just said,” Psaki said.
Asked to clarify whether Taiwan was prohibited from raising the flag at the representative’s residence, Psaki said: “The issue is that it’s inconsistent with the spirit of our policy and it’s violated our long-standing understanding on the conduct of our unofficial relations. I’m not sure if there was a previous incident to speak of.”
Psaki said that any questions about complaints from China about the raising of the ROC flag in Washington would have to be addressed to Beijing.
Reporters asked if the US flag was raised above US government offices in Taipei.
“US officials in Taipei and Washington are in discussions with Taiwan authorities about the matter,” Psaki said. “ I don’t have any other specifics for you.”
Pressed about future display of the US flag in Taipei, Psaki said: “I just don’t have anything to predict for you at this point. If I have something more to offer, I’m happy to share it. I’m not sure that I will at this point, because we’re still discussing with them.”
Asked what message she wanted to send to Taipei, Psaki said: “I think the message is what we’ve been conveying, which is that we’re disappointed with the action. The flag-raising ceremony violated our long-standing understanding on the conduct of our unofficial relations. We have a robust set of cultural relations, but we do not have diplomatic relations. And we’ll continue to discuss this with the proper officials.”
A reporter said that Shen told a news conference in Taipei that he did not need permission to raise the flag at a private ceremony at Twin Oaks.
“Well, as I stated, it’s a representative compound; it’s not a private home,” Psaki said. “And I think I made clear what our views are, so I don’t have anything more to add.”
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