UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday defended his decision to reject Taiwan's latest application for UN membership this month, but conceded that the membership question "ultimately" must be decided by the member states, not his office.
In a joint press conference in California with California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, however, Ban did not address the question of why the application, in which Taiwan sought to join the world body under the name "Taiwan," was not submitted to the UN General Assembly for debate and a vote.
Asked by a reporter about his decision, Ban cited UN Resolution 2758, the 1971 UN action that switched representation of China from the Republic of China to the People's Republic of China.
`Sole and legitimate'
Ban cited the resolution as "clearly mentioning that the government of China is the sole and legitimate government and the position of the United Nations is that Taiwan is part of China."
"The position of the United Nations is that the People's Republic of China represents the whole of China as the sole and legitimate representative government of China," Ban said. "The decision until now about the wish of the people of Taiwan to join the United Nations has been decided on that basis."
UN membership, Ban said, "ultimately needs to be decided by the member states of the United Nations," Ban said.
However, he did not say why the members were not allowed to vote on the latest application.
From 1993 until this year, Taiwan has applied each year for UN membership under the name "Republic of China," each time unsuccessfully.
Same result
This year, the application used the name "Taiwan," but the result was the same.
President Chen Shui-bian (
The UN office of legal affairs returned the letter shortly after it was submitted, effectively rejecting Taiwan's application.
Advocates of UN membership in Taiwan have condemned Ban's and the Secretariat's action, contesting the Secretariat's ability to reject the application unilaterally without submitting it to the UN membership for its deliberation.
Taiwan also argues that Resolution 2758 does not address the issue of the Taiwanese representation in the world body.
Additional reporting by CNA
Taiwan yesterday denied Chinese allegations that its military was behind a cyberattack on a technology company in Guangzhou, after city authorities issued warrants for 20 suspects. The Guangzhou Municipal Public Security Bureau earlier yesterday issued warrants for 20 people it identified as members of the Information, Communications and Electronic Force Command (ICEFCOM). The bureau alleged they were behind a May 20 cyberattack targeting the backend system of a self-service facility at the company. “ICEFCOM, under Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party, directed the illegal attack,” the warrant says. The bureau placed a bounty of 10,000 yuan (US$1,392) on each of the 20 people named in
The High Court yesterday found a New Taipei City woman guilty of charges related to helping Beijing secure surrender agreements from military service members. Lee Huei-hsin (李慧馨) was sentenced to six years and eight months in prison for breaching the National Security Act (國家安全法), making illegal compacts with government employees and bribery, the court said. The verdict is final. Lee, the manager of a temple in the city’s Lujhou District (蘆洲), was accused of arranging for eight service members to make surrender pledges to the Chinese People’s Liberation Army in exchange for money, the court said. The pledges, which required them to provide identification
Nine retired generals from Taiwan, Japan and the US have been invited to participate in a tabletop exercise hosted by the Taipei School of Economics and Political Science Foundation tomorrow and Wednesday that simulates a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan in 2030, the foundation said yesterday. The five retired Taiwanese generals would include retired admiral Lee Hsi-min (李喜明), joined by retired US Navy admiral Michael Mullen and former chief of staff of the Japan Self-Defense Forces general Shigeru Iwasaki, it said. The simulation aims to offer strategic insights into regional security and peace in the Taiwan Strait, it added. Foundation chair Huang Huang-hsiung
’DISTORTION’: Beijing’s assertion that the US agreed with its position on Taiwan is a recurring tactic it uses to falsely reinforce its sovereignty claims, MOFA said The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday said Chinese state media deliberately distorted Taiwan’s sovereign status, following reports that US President Donald Trump agreed to uphold the “one China” policy in a phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). During the more than one-hour-long call, Xi urged Trump to retreat from trade measures that roiled the global economy and cautioned him against threatening steps on Taiwan, a Chinese government summary of the call said. China’s official Xinhua news agency quoted Xi as saying that the US should handle the Taiwan issue cautiously and avoid the two countries being drawn into dangerous
RSS