The recent string of goodwill gestures extended by President Chen Shui-bian (
"When I see Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤), I'll tell him that President Chen has expressed goodwill gestures in various occasions and that his resolve to pursue peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is strong," Lee Yuan-tseh (李遠哲), the president of Academia Sinica, told a press conference held upon his arrival. "I don't have any new messages for President Hu, except for those mentioned in President Chen's inauguration speech, the National Day address and the Nov. 11 speech."
During Chen's inauguration speech, he pledged to honor the "five noes" promised in his 2000 inauguration speech. He also urged both sides to establish a dynamic "peace and stability framework" for interactions.
Chen called on both sides of the Taiwan Strait to use a 1992 meeting in Hong Kong as the basis to return to the negotiating table during the National Day address.
On the one-month anniversary of his National Day address, Chen reiterated proposals made during his National Day speech and proposed that both sides seriously consider the issue of arms control and establish confidence-building measures through consultations and dialogues.
Chen also urged both sides to review military policies and seek to establish a code of conduct across the Taiwan Strait as a tangible guarantee of permanent peace in the Taiwan Strait.
Lee said that he also plans to mention Chen's recent invitation to Wang Daohan (
Commenting on the recent Cabinet reshuffle in the Bush administration, Lee said that he remained upbeat about Taiwan-US relations and suspected that it would remain unchanged during Bush's second presidential term.
"The US is a maturely developed democratic country, so I don't think its foreign policy will change dramatically simply because of the replacement of a few people," he said. "I believe President Bush will exert himself in maintaining Taiwan-US relations and safeguarding peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region for the following four years."
Casting the removal of a Taiwanese promotion video because of China's protests as a "petty matter," Lee said that he knew little about the fracas because he had been in Japan attending a technology forum.
William Yih (易榮宗), spokesman for the Taiwanese delegation, was assigned by Lee to answer the question.
"We feel sorry about what happened because no APEC member economy has the right to conduct anything similar to news censorship on any other member economy," he said. "We hope the matter ends here and both sides focus on more constructive issues."
Lee also expressed optimism over the bilateral talks with other economic leaders during the forthcoming leaders' summit.
"Economic leaders come to the meeting every year to discuss regional problems and possible solutions. This year is no exception," he said. "While we have not yet finalized the bilateral meetings with other economy leaders, I believe there are plenty of opportunities to do so."
Although China's economic development could be seen as an opportunity for Taiwan, Lee said that he is also worried that Taiwan might lose its competitive edge during the course of time.
In the era of globalization, Lee said that all APEC economies should make efforts to compete and cooperate towards the common goal of bettering regional welfare as well as that of the entire human race.
"There's no world peace if mankind cannot solve the plight of the African continent," he said. "There's no hope if the world doesn't work together as a family to work out problems and respect each other's unique customs and cultures."
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-Wong tomorrow, which it said would possibly make landfall near central Taiwan. As of 2am yesterday, Fung-Wong was about 1,760km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving west-northwest at 26kph. It is forecast to reach Luzon in the northern Philippines by tomorrow, the CWA said. After entering the South China Sea, Typhoon Fung-Wong is likely to turn northward toward Taiwan, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said, adding that it would likely make landfall near central Taiwan. The CWA expects to issue a land
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it is expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong this afternoon and a land warning tomorrow. As of 1pm, the storm was about 1,070km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, and was moving west-northwest at 28 to 32kph, according to CWA data. The storm had a radius of 250km, with maximum sustained winds of 173kph and gusts reaching 209kph, the CWA added. The storm is forecast to pass near Luzon in the Philippines before entering the South China Sea and potentially turning northward toward Taiwan, the CWA said. CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said
PREPARATION: Ferry lines and flights were canceled ahead of only the second storm to hit the nation in November, while many areas canceled classes and work Authorities yesterday evacuated more than 3,000 people ahead of approaching Tropical Storm Fung-wong, which is expected to make landfall between Kaohsiung and Pingtung County this evening. Fung-wong was yesterday morning downgraded from a typhoon to a tropical storm as it approached the nation’s southwest coast, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, as it issued a land alert for the storm. The alert applies to residents in Tainan, Kaohsiung, Pingtung and Taitung counties, and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春). As of press time last night, Taichung, Tainan, Kaohsiung, and Yilan, Miaoli, Changhua, Yunlin, Pingtung and Penghu counties, as well as Chiayi city and county had
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday issued a sea alert for Typhoon Fung-wong (鳳凰) as it threatened vessels operating in waters off the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島), the Bashi Channel and south of the Taiwan Strait. A land alert is expected to be announced some time between late last night and early this morning, the CWA said. As of press time last night, Taoyuan, as well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties had declared today a typhoon day, canceling work and classes. Except for a few select districts in Taipei and New Taipei City, all other areas and city
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