President Chen Shui-bian (
Chen also offered to provide any assistance Taiwan could offer to help with rescue and reconstruction efforts.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that eight Taiwanese who work in the World Trade Center remain missing.
Two work at the US branch office of First Commercial Bank, two others work for a US firm and the details of the remaining four were unavailable yesterday.
The president also said he had ordered the government -- specifically the national defense and security departments -- to prepare for any unexpected incidents.
"We also appeal to China's Communist authorities," Chen said during a televised speech to the people of Taiwan, "that both sides of the Strait jointly maintain the peace of the Taiwan Strait and the stability of the Asia-Pacific region."
The president called a national security meeting Tuesday night shortly after he was informed of the tragedy in the US.
Top officials from the National Security Council, the Ministry of National Defense and the Chiefs of the General-Staff gave a briefing on the latest evaluation of the situation in the US.
The meeting also discussed the issues of national defense, the economy and social security. To help boost public resolve and calm, Chen discussed the outcome of Tuesday night's meeting during his televised speech yesterday afternoon.
Chen outlined 10 points which he said were to help strengthen the public's resolve and enhance awareness of the risk of terrorism.
The president offered his condolences to those who lost loved ones in the attacks in New York and Washington and he condemned terrorism, which he said was the gravest challenge to democracy.
The president then said that the country's military was on a heightened state of alert to prevent any "unexpected" incidents.
On the domestic front, Chen directed the Cabinet to pay special attention to financial market stability and to ensure sufficient supplies of energy and major commodities.
The president also ordered law enforcement to tighten security at airports, harbors, nuclear power plants and major transport facilities as well as foreign embassies, representative offices and schools.
"Relevant government agencies should closely monitor developments and beef up our capacity to deal with crises or emergency events," Chen said.
In the face of possible changes in the international situation after the devastating terrorist attacks, Chen also expressed his hope that the people of Taiwan, regardless of their party affiliation, stand united and jointly work to enhance national security, economic well-being and social stability.
"This is a time for us to demonstrate our perseverance, fortitude and confidence," he added.
With airline restrictions in the US still in effect, Premier Chang Chung-hsiung (
Chang yesterday held a news conference to assure the people of Taiwan that the Cabinet had coordinated with the presidential office to form an emergency team to respond to any likely impact of the terrorist attack on Taiwan.
Chang said he had given Cabinet ministers instructions for reinforcing the nation's aviation security inspections and to address safety concerns of Americans in Taiwan.
"I've also expressed our nation's support for future actions the US government may take against [perpetrators of] the terrorist attack," Chang added.
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