Secretary-General to the President Chen Shih-meng (陳師孟) is the most likely choice to represent President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) at the upcoming APEC leaders' summit, the Taipei Times learned yesterday.
Among the several possible candidates, sources said Chen Shih-meng is the most suitable, considering his high status in the government and his background as an economist.
But the source added that President Chen has not yet made a final decision and that a decision won't be made before Mexico, which hosts this year's summit, sends its envoy to deliver an official invitation to the meeting.
Other possible choices included DPP Secretary-General Chang Chun-hsiung (
The 10th APEC leaders' summit will be held on Oct. 26 and Oct. 27, in Los Cabos, Mexico
Along with China and Hong Kong, Taiwan was admitted into the 21-member grouping in 1991.
Taiwan is apprehensive that China may pressure the host country -- as it happens in almost all APEC meets -- to demote Taiwan's status.
A presidential official indicated that to safeguard Taiwan's rights, the government has beefed up efforts in information gathering and on the diplomatic front, and hopes that the US will assist Taiwan in the matter.
Taiwan was forced to be absent from the APEC summit last year due to a dispute between Taiwan and China over Taiwan's choice of envoy.
The host country, China, refused to extend an invitation to former vice president Li Yuan-tzu (李元簇), who was Chen's choice as his representative at the meeting.
Since the meeting of APEC leaders in 1993 in Seattle, Beijing has pressured the conference's organizers into refusing to allow Taiwan's president, vice president, premier or vice premier attend the group's annual summits.
Although China did not specify its reason for refusing last year's envoy, it is widely believed that Beijing objected to Li's status as a former vice president.
Some foreign ministry officials have expressed concern that China might pressure Mexico to regard Taiwan's absence at last year's summit as an established practice and exclude Taiwan from future meetings.
It is traditional for the APEC host country to send an envoy to deliver its invitation to Taiwan's president, who is expected to decline the offer and send an envoy to attend on his behalf.
Mexico's vice economic minister of trade came to Taiwan in June to personally inform the president of the meeting's schedule.
During that meeting, Chen expressed his appreciation that Mexico had followed the usual practice irrespective of the incident last year.
Among the choices, Lin does not seem to be a possible candidate because his status would breach Taiwan's agreement with APEC authorities.
Siew attended APEC summits in 1993 and 1994 on behalf of former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) in his capacity as chairman of the Council for Economic Planning and Development.
But Siew's attendance at this year's meeting would require KMT approval because of his position as KMT vice chairman.
TYPHOON: The storm’s path indicates a high possibility of Krathon making landfall in Pingtung County, depending on when the storm turns north, the CWA said Typhoon Krathon is strengthening and is more likely to make landfall in Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said in a forecast released yesterday afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the CWA’s updated sea warning for Krathon showed that the storm was about 430km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point. It was moving in west-northwest at 9kph, with maximum sustained winds of 119kph and gusts of up to 155kph, CWA data showed. Krathon is expected to move further west before turning north tomorrow, CWA forecaster Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said. The CWA’s latest forecast and other countries’ projections of the storm’s path indicate a higher
SLOW-MOVING STORM: The typhoon has started moving north, but at a very slow pace, adding uncertainty to the extent of its impact on the nation Work and classes have been canceled across the nation today because of Typhoon Krathon, with residents in the south advised to brace for winds that could reach force 17 on the Beaufort scale as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecast that the storm would make landfall there. Force 17 wind with speeds of 56.1 to 61.2 meters per second, the highest number on the Beaufort scale, rarely occur and could cause serious damage. Krathon could be the second typhoon to land in southwestern Taiwan, following typhoon Elsie in 1996, CWA records showed. As of 8pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 180km
TYPHOON DAY: Taitung, Pingtung, Tainan, Chiayi, Hualien and Kaohsiung canceled work and classes today. The storm is to start moving north this afternoon The outer rim of Typhoon Krathon made landfall in Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) at about noon yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, adding that the eye of the storm was expected to hit land tomorrow. The CWA at 2:30pm yesterday issued a land alert for Krathon after issuing a sea alert on Sunday. It also expanded the scope of the sea alert to include waters north of Taiwan Strait, in addition to its south, from the Bashi Channel to the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島). As of 6pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 160km south of
STILL DANGEROUS: The typhoon was expected to weaken, but it would still maintain its structure, with high winds and heavy rain, the weather agency said One person had died amid heavy winds and rain brought by Typhoon Krathon, while 70 were injured and two people were unaccounted for, the Central Emergency Operation Center said yesterday, while work and classes have been canceled nationwide today for the second day. The Hualien County Fire Department said that a man in his 70s had fallen to his death at about 11am on Tuesday while trimming a tree at his home in Shoufeng Township (壽豐). Meanwhile, the Yunlin County Fire Department received a report of a person falling into the sea at about 1pm on Tuesday, but had to suspend search-and-rescue
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