President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday congratulated US President Joe Biden and US Vice President Kamala Harris on their inauguration, and reiterated the nation’s commitment to advancing ties with its “most important ally,” after the Taiwanese envoy in Washington was formally invited to the ceremony, the first since the two sides severed ties in 1979.
“Taiwan and the US have long had diverse and close cooperation on all manner of issues,” Tsai wrote on Facebook, lauding the “warm and deep friendship” between the people of the two nations.
She wished the new administration well in carrying out its policies, and vowed to deepen the Taiwan-US relationship to “contribute the positive forces of democracy and freedom” to the world.
Photo courtesy of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the US
The president also thanked the administration of former US president Donald Trump, including its diplomats, as well as bipartisan supporters for a fruitful four years.
The warming ties were fully evidenced by the formal invitation offered to Representative to the US Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) to attend the inauguration on Wednesday, Tsai said.
The US Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, in a break from tradition, formally invited Taiwan’s representative to attend for the first time since 1979.
In previous inaugurations, Taiwanese representatives have been invited as guests of US congressional members or organizations.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a news release yesterday confirmed the nature of the invitation to the “most important democratic event in the US.”
The gesture “demonstrates the two nations’ close friendship formed on the basis of shared values,” it said. “On this existing foundation, we will continue to promote exchanges and cooperation on all levels and in all areas with the Biden administration.”
Ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou (歐江安) said that Hsiao was invited in the same capacity as other honored guests, including permission to bring a plus-one.
It was not the only time Taiwanese officials have attended, Ou said, but stressed the “great significance” of this invitation, especially as the event was pared down amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Asked why the ministry did not announce the invitation earlier, Ou said that the ministry had no ulterior motives.
Based on experience, it is ministry policy not to publicize such invitations in advance, Ou said.
The ministry prefers to first use the “most appropriate method” to offer congratulations, she said.
A ministry statement saying that the “probability [of attending the inauguration] is low” referenced sending a delegation to Washington, she said, adding that it said nothing about Hsiao.
“Anyone who says there is ‘no way in’ is making an incorrect assumption,” she said, referencing Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Ma Wen-chun’s (馬文君) statement on Wednesday that the Tsai administration’s deference to the US Republican Party had harmed its future with the Biden administration.
The KMT is positive about advances in Taiwan-US ties, KMT Chairman Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) said, but added that it is more important to convert formal exchanges into tangible mutual benefits.
Additional reporting by CNA
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
NO CHANGE: The TRA makes clear that the US does not consider the status of Taiwan to have been determined by WWII-era documents, a former AIT deputy director said The American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) comments that World War-II era documents do not determine Taiwan’s political status accurately conveyed the US’ stance, the US Department of State said. An AIT spokesperson on Saturday said that a Chinese official mischaracterized World War II-era documents as stating that Taiwan was ceded to the China. The remarks from the US’ de facto embassy in Taiwan drew criticism from the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, whose director said the comments put Taiwan in danger. The Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday reported that a US State Department spokesperson confirmed the AIT’s position. They added that the US would continue to
IMPORTANT BACKER: China seeks to expel US influence from the Indo-Pacific region and supplant Washington as the global leader, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said China is preparing for war to seize Taiwan, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said in Washington on Friday, warning that Taiwan’s fall would trigger a regional “domino effect” endangering US security. In a speech titled “Maintaining the Peaceful and Stable Status Quo Across the Taiwan Strait is in Line with the Shared Interests of Taiwan and the United States,” Chiu said Taiwan’s strategic importance is “closely tied” to US interests. Geopolitically, Taiwan sits in a “core position” in the first island chain — an arc stretching from Japan, through Taiwan and the Philippines, to Borneo, which is shared by
RSS