The US and Taiwan can deepen their relations on many fronts, former head of the US Indo-Pacific Command Philip Davidson said yesterday while visiting President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) at the Presidential Office.
Davidson is leading a six-member delegation from the National Bureau of Asian Research, a US-based think tank. They arrived on Monday and are scheduled to depart tomorrow.
Tsai met with the delegation yesterday morning, welcoming the organization on its first visit to Taiwan since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the office said in a statement.
Photo: Makoto Lin, EPA-EFE
She thanked Davidson, a retired admiral, for paying close attention to matters regarding the Taiwan Strait during his tenure from 2018 to 2021, and calling on the US government to continue his efforts after retiring, the statement said.
Taiwan must boost its defense capabilities in the face of authoritarian expansion to ensure national security, and safeguard the values of democracy and freedom, Tsai said in the statement.
“We have the faith, confidence and ability” to protect the country, Tsai said, adding that Taiwan would continue to work with the US and other like-minded partners.
Taiwan and the US continue to facilitate military exchanges, economic cooperation and trade partnerships, Tsai said.
The latest meeting of the US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st-Century Trade last month facilitated trade with convenient customs clearance protocols and bilateral platforms, she said.
Taiwan is looking forward to cooperating more closely with the US in supply chain matters, telecommunications security, science and technology, and other areas, she added.
Taiwan is a force for good that maintains regional peace and protects democracy and freedom, Tsai said, adding that the nation contributes to the prosperity of the region.
Davidson thanked Tsai for the warm welcome and said that he is honored to visit Taiwan for the first time.
He had in-depth discussions with US and Taiwanese bodies, along with think tanks in Taipei, he said.
Discussions since the delegation’s arrival focused on Taiwan’s democratic progress and civil society, as well as China’s actions against Taiwan, he said.
Taiwan has robust infrastructure and industrial development, he said, adding that he has found Taiwanese to be very friendly.
Prior to his arrival, Davidson was in Japan, where he clarified a remark he made in 2021 that China might attack Taiwan in abut 2027, saying that such a move would not necessarily manifest as an invasion of Taiwan proper.
“In my mind, that can be many lesser things than an all-out invasion. One of those would be the threats to outer islands, and I think it’s a grave security concern,” he said.
Three cases of Candida auris, a fungus that can cause a yeast infection known as candidiasis in humans, have been reported in Taiwan over the past few years, but they did not display drug resistance, Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) said yesterday. Lo made the statement at a news conference in Taipei, one day after the Washington Post reported that the potentially deadly fungus is spreading in US hospitals. The fungus was first discovered in Japan in 2009 and poses a danger to immunocompromised people, with an estimated mortality rate of 30 to 60 percent, Lo
‘COINCIDENCE’: The former president should keep in mind local and global response to his actions and abide by the law to safeguard national interests, the MAC said The Presidential Office yesterday confirmed that it has received an application from former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) to visit China next week and would be discussing his security detail. “As the travel restrictions on former president Ma have expired, we respect his plan to pay respect to his ancestors in China,” Presidential Office spokeswoman Lin Yu-chan (林聿禪) said. “We will review his travel plan and consult concerned agencies to assist him in arranging his security detail.” “We also hope that Ma, as a former commander in chief of Taiwan, acts in a manner that aligns with national interests and does not hurt
‘DIRE’: Taiwan would not engage in ‘dollar diplomacy,’ the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, after China reportedly offered Honduras up to US$3 billion to establish relations The government yesterday recalled its ambassador to Honduras after the Central American nation sent its foreign minister to China, signaling that it would sever diplomatic ties with Taiwan. Suspicions concerning ties with Honduras are rife after Honduran President Xiomara Castro on Tuesday last week wrote on Twitter that her country would pursue diplomatic ties with China. Honduran Minister of Foreign Affairs Eduardo Enrique Reina traveled to China on Wednesday “to promote efforts for the establishment of diplomatic relations” on instructions from Castro, Reuters yesterday quoted Honduran presidential spokesman Ivis Alvarado as saying. The government “has decided to immediately recall the ambassador to Honduras
‘NOTHING NEW’: China should not use Tsai Ing-wen’s transits through the US as a pretext to step up aggressive activity in the Taiwan Strait, a Washington official said President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) is to stop over in the US on her way to and from Central America next week, but her administration would not confirm a meeting with US House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Tsai’s delegation is to leave Taipei on Wednesday next week and stop over in New York City, Presidential Office spokeswoman Lin Yu-chan (林聿禪) told a news conference yesterday. Tsai is then to head to Guatemala on Saturday next week for talks with Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei and to meet with Taiwanese expatriates, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. On April 3, Tsai is scheduled to travel
RSS