Premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) yesterday said that Hsu Wen-long's (許文龍) advocacy of "one China" in a newspaper advertisement Saturday was his personal statement, and not the government's position.
Hsieh said he would try to understand what may have occurred behind the scenes to influence Hsu's move.
"The government's position is clear: we oppose any kind of `one China' principle unilaterally defined by China," Hsieh said during a visit to the Taipei Fine Arts Museum yesterday morning. "Hsu's words are not the government's policy."
Hsu, the founder of the Chi Mei Group and an adviser to the president, surprised many by publishing a letter on Saturday in a newspaper saying that both sides of the Taiwan Strait belonged to "one China," and that he opposed the Taiwan independence movement.
Hsu, who had been warned by China about his apparent pro-independence leanings, is generally seen as an advocate of a new Taiwanese nation and a good friend of the Democratic Progressive Party.
Hsieh said Hsu's statement was very strange to him and "I would like to understand more about his real intent."
Cabinet spokesman Chou Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said Hsu is a respectable businessman who has greatly contributed to the nation's economy.
He said it was more likely that Hsu had somehow been pressured into making the statement, rather than having a real change of heart.
"Beijing has been pressuring Taiwanese businesspeople operating in China to take a pro-China position, and it is likely that Beijing forces them to say things that go against their hearts," Chou said.
He said that most Taiwanese wouldn't believe such statements because they know they are not sincere.
"The premier chatted with Hsu in January," Chou said. "They exchanged views on business and politics. The premier did not detect any change in Hsu's political stance at that time."
Chou said, however, that Hsu's word might reflect the vulnerability of Taiwanese businesspeople operating in China, and that the government should help them.
Meanwhile, Hsieh said yesterday that he was glad that Saturday's demonstration against China's "Anti-Secession" Law ended successfully and peacefully. The world now knows that Taiwanese will not accept China's threats, he added.
The government won't resume dialogue with China at this time because the atmosphere between both sides has been bad, he said. Chou said the government will wait to see if Beijing makes any friendly gestures toward Taiwan to offset its enactment of the "Anti-Secession" Law.
Such gestures could included passing regulations protecting the rights of Taiwanese businesspeople in China, or agreeing to resume cross-strait talks on an equal footing.
RESPONSE: The transit sends a message that China’s alignment with other countries would not deter the West from defending freedom of navigation, an academic said Canadian frigate the Ville de Quebec and Australian guided-missile destroyer the Brisbane transited the Taiwan Strait yesterday morning, the first time the two nations have conducted a joint freedom of navigation operation. The Canadian and Australian militaries did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Ministry of National Defense declined to confirm the passage, saying only that Taiwan’s armed forces had deployed surveillance and reconnaissance assets, along with warships and combat aircraft, to safeguard security across the Strait. The two vessels were observed transiting northward along the eastern side of the Taiwan Strait’s median line, with Japan being their most likely destination,
‘NOT ALONE’: A Taiwan Strait war would disrupt global trade routes, and could spark a worldwide crisis, so a powerful US presence is needed as a deterrence, a US senator said US Senator Deb Fischer on Thursday urged her colleagues in the US Congress to deepen Washington’s cooperation with Taiwan and other Indo-Pacific partners to contain the global security threat from China. Fischer and other lawmakers recently returned from an official trip to the Indo-Pacific region, where they toured US military bases in Hawaii and Guam, and visited leaders, including President William Lai (賴清德). The trip underscored the reality that the world is undergoing turmoil, and maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific region is crucial to the security interests of the US and its partners, she said. Her visit to Taiwan demonstrated ways the
GLOBAL ISSUE: If China annexes Taiwan, ‘it will not stop its expansion there, as it only becomes stronger and has more force to expand further,’ the president said China’s military and diplomatic expansion is not a sole issue for Taiwan, but one that risks world peace, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that Taiwan would stand with the alliance of democratic countries to preserve peace through deterrence. Lai made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times). “China is strategically pushing forward to change the international order,” Lai said, adding that China established the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank, launched the Belt and Road Initiative, and pushed for yuan internationalization, because it wants to replace the democratic rules-based international
RELEASED: Ko emerged from a courthouse before about 700 supporters, describing his year in custody as a period of ‘suffering’ and vowed to ‘not surrender’ Former Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) was released on NT$70 million (US$2.29 million) bail yesterday, bringing an end to his year-long incommunicado detention as he awaits trial on corruption charges. Under the conditions set by the Taipei District Court on Friday, Ko must remain at a registered address, wear a GPS-enabled ankle monitor and is prohibited from leaving the country. He is also barred from contacting codefendants or witnesses. After Ko’s wife, Peggy Chen (陳佩琪), posted bail, Ko was transported from the Taipei Detention Center to the Taipei District Court at 12:20pm, where he was fitted with the tracking
RSS