Representative to the US Stanley Kao (高碩泰) on Wednesday attended a meeting of a US-led coalition to counter the Islamic State (IS) group in Washington.
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson presided over the meeting of the Global Coalition on the Defeat of ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria), the first since US President Donald Trump took office on Jan. 20.
The coalition, which was established in 2014 during the administration of then-US president Barack Obama, has 68 members.
Photo: CNA
In addition to Taiwan, coalition members in the Asia-Pacific region include Afghanistan, Australia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and South Korea.
Taiwan’s participation has been in the area of humanitarian assistance, such as providing 350 temporary housing units to Iraqi refugees displaced by the militant group in 2014 and donating US$100,000 to provide shelter for refugees.
Taiwan’s representative office in the US declined to comment when asked how Taipei plans to continue its humanitarian efforts in the region.
Presidential Office spokesman Alex Huang (黃重諺) yesterday said that as a member of the international community, Taiwan has adamantly adhered to the universal values of peace, freedom, democracy and human rights.
“With that spirit in mind and based on our shared values, the nation has actively supported and participated in international cooperation on emerging issues, such as humanitarian aid, medical assistance, disease prevention and research, anti-terrorism, and combating transnational crime,” he said.
“These efforts are aimed at making Taiwan an indispensable partner of the international community,” he added.
The meeting coincided with a terror attack in London, where an assailant in a car plowed into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge, before running through the gates of the British Parliament and fatally stabbing an unarmed police officer.
He was shot dead by police officers.
The attack left four people dead, including the assailant, and at least 40 injured.
In a written statement, Tillerson condemned “these horrific acts of violence,” saying that “whether they were carried out by troubled individuals or by terrorists, the victims know no difference.”
He also extended his condolences to the victims’ families.
Trump telephoned British Prime Minister Theresa May to offer his condolences over the attack, praising the “prompt response” by UK security forces and first responders, and pledged the US’ “full support and cooperation” in responding to the attack and bringing those responsible to justice.
Additional reporting by Stacy Hsu
UPDATED (3:40pm): A suspected gas explosion at a shopping mall in Taichung this morning has killed four people and injured 20 others, as emergency responders continue to investigate. The explosion occurred on the 12th floor of the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi in Situn District (西屯) at 11:33am. One person was declared dead at the scene, while three people were declared deceased later after receiving emergency treatment. Another 20 people sustained major or minor injuries. The Taichung Fire Bureau said it received a report of the explosion at 11:33am and sent rescuers to respond. The cause of the explosion is still under investigation, it said. The National Fire
ACCOUNTABILITY: The incident, which occured at a Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Department Store in Taichung, was allegedly caused by a gas explosion on the 12th floor Shin Kong Group (新光集團) president Richard Wu (吳昕陽) yesterday said the company would take responsibility for an apparent gas explosion that resulted in four deaths and 26 injuries at Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Zhonggang Store in Taichung yesterday. The Taichung Fire Bureau at 11:33am yesterday received a report saying that people were injured after an explosion at the department store on Section 3 of Taiwan Boulevard in Taichung’s Situn District (西屯). It sent 56 ambulances and 136 paramedics to the site, with the people injured sent to Cheng Ching Hospital’s Chung Kang Branch, Wuri Lin Shin Hospital, Taichung Veterans General Hospital or Chung
‘TAIWAN-FRIENDLY’: The last time the Web site fact sheet removed the lines on the US not supporting Taiwanese independence was during the Biden administration in 2022 The US Department of State has removed a statement on its Web site that it does not support Taiwanese independence, among changes that the Taiwanese government praised yesterday as supporting Taiwan. The Taiwan-US relations fact sheet, produced by the department’s Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, previously stated that the US opposes “any unilateral changes to the status quo from either side; we do not support Taiwan independence; and we expect cross-strait differences to be resolved by peaceful means.” In the updated version published on Thursday, the line stating that the US does not support Taiwanese independence had been removed. The updated
‘LAWFUL USE’: The last time a US warship transited the Taiwan Strait was on Oct. 20 last year, and this week’s transit is the first of US President Donald Trump’s second term Two US military vessels transited the Taiwan Strait from Sunday through early yesterday, the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement, the first such mission since US President Donald Trump took office last month. The two vessels sailed south through the Strait, the ministry said, adding that it closely monitored nearby airspace and waters at the time and observed nothing unusual. The ministry did not name the two vessels, but the US Navy identified them as the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson and the Pathfinder-class survey ship USNS Bowditch. The ships carried out a north-to-south transit from