Acting US Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs Naz Durakoglu on Friday said that the US would continue to express support for Taiwan as China seeks to reduce Taiwan’s international standing.
Her statement was made in response to a letter written on Wednesday last week and addressed to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in which US representatives Scott Perry and Tom Tiffany urged the US Department of State to be wary of Chinese meddling in Haiti following the assassination of Haitian president Jovenel Moise.
In their letter, the two representatives highlighted the importance of the Caribbean nation’s ties to Taiwan, which is one of its 16 remaining diplomatic allies.
“The United States will continue to express support for Taiwan publicly, collaborate with Taiwan on initiatives that demonstrate the value it brings to the international community, and encourage like-minded countries’ engagement with and public demonstrations of support for Taiwan,” Durakoglu said on Friday.
She also said the department was fully aware that China “seeks to abridge Taiwan’s international space and reduce its international standing.”
Durakoglu said the US has sent an interagency delegation to Haiti to assist with the investigation into Moise’s assassination.
Moise was killed on July 7 by a group of gunmen at his private residence in the capital, Port-au-Prince.
His wife, Martine Moise, was seriously wounded during the attack and was flown to Miami for treatment. She returned to Haiti last week to attend her husband’s funeral on Friday.
“The United States stands with the Haitian people at this difficult time, as they strive to build a safer, more democratic future,” Durakoglu said.
Taiwan and Haiti celebrated the 65th anniversary of diplomatic relations in April. Jovenel Moise last visited Taiwan in 2018 for five days.
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday lavished US President Donald Trump with praise and vows of a “golden age” of ties on his visit to Tokyo, before inking a deal with Washington aimed at securing critical minerals. Takaichi — Japan’s first female prime minister — pulled out all the stops for Trump in her opening test on the international stage and even announced that she would nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize, the White House said. Trump has become increasingly focused on the Nobel since his return to power in January and claims to have ended several conflicts around the world,
REASSURANCE: The US said Taiwan’s interests would not be harmed during the talk and that it remains steadfast in its support for the nation, the foreign minister said US President Donald Trump on Friday said he would bring up Taiwan with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) during a meeting on the sidelines of the APEC Summit in South Korea this week. “I will be talking about Taiwan [with Xi],” Trump told reporters before he departed for his trip to Asia, adding that he had “a lot of respect for Taiwan.” “We have a lot to talk about with President Xi, and he has a lot to talk about with us. I think we’ll have a good meeting,” Trump said. Taiwan has long been a contentious issue between the US and China.
Taiwan’s first African swine fever (ASF) case has been confirmed and would soon be reported to the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH), Minister of Agriculture Chen Junne-jih (陳駿季) yesterday. The Ministry of Agriculture’s Veterinary Research Institute yesterday completed the analysis of samples collected on Tuesday from dead pigs at a hog farm in Taichung and found they were ASF-positive. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency Animal Quarantine Division chief Lin Nien-nung (林念農) said the result would be reported to the WOAH and Taiwan’s major trade partners would also be notified, adding that pork exports would be suspended. As of Friday, all samples