Minister of Finance Chuang Tsui-yun (莊翠雲) protested Taiwan’s designation as “Taipei, China” at the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) annual meeting, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday.
A ministry official in Chuang’s delegation to the meeting in Incheon, South Korea, said by telephone that Chuang repeated Taiwan’s demand to correct the name and voiced “our disagreement over the unilateral alteration of our membership designation.”
Established in 1966, the bank is owned by 68 members, with 49 from the region. Chuang serves as a board governor.
Photo courtesy of Asian Development Bank
Taiwan was one of the bank’s founding members, but it has been called “Taipei, China” since 1986, when the People’s Republic of China joined the bank.
Chuang protested the designation during her speech, saying that Taiwan has fulfilled its obligations and responsibilities as a member of the bank, the ministry said.
She urged ADB member nations to respect each other and allow Taiwan to participate in the bank’s activities on an equal footing.
On its Web site, the Manila-headquartered bank says that Taiwan has provided it with US$1.54 billion in capital as of Dec. 31 last year, and has also contributed or committed US$133.43 million to the bank’s special funds since becoming a member.
A total of 1,102 goods, works and related service contracts worth US$1.51 billion, and 83 consulting contracts valued at US$49.67 million, have been awarded to contractors, suppliers and consultants from “Taipei, China,” the Web site says.
The annual meeting was held from Tuesday through Friday under the theme of “Rebounding Asia: Recover, Reconnect and Reform.”
The ministry official said that Chuang discussed a range of topics at the annual meeting, with a particular focus on climate change, regional cooperation and gender equality.
She urged the bank to make stronger and more effective efforts to build climate resilience for environmentally vulnerable developing member countries, such as small island states, the official said.
Chuang also stressed the importance of bolstering domestic resource mobilization among developing member countries to improve their capacity to collect taxes and other revenue to provide better public services and economic support.
Regarding gender equality, Chuang said that Taiwan has been ahead of its peers on the issue and was willing to share its experience with its partners.
Chuang and central bank Deputy Governor Chu Mei-lie (朱美麗), who is Taiwan’s alternate governor to the ADB, are next to attend the 63rd annual governors’ meeting of the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) in the Dominican Republic from Thursday to Saturday.
Chuang is to participate in her capacity as a governor at the CABEI, the ministry said.
Taiwan joined the CABEI in 1992 under its official Republic of China name as a non-regional member, with an 11.09 percent stake in the bank, the highest among the body’s seven non-regional members.
DETERRENCE: With 1,000 indigenous Hsiung Feng II and III missiles and 400 Harpoon missiles, the nation would boast the highest anti-ship missile density in the world With Taiwan wrapping up mass production of Hsiung Feng II and III missiles by December and an influx of Harpoon missiles from the US, Taiwan would have the highest density of anti-ship missiles in the world, a source said yesterday. Taiwan is to wrap up mass production of the indigenous anti-ship missiles by the end of year, as the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology has been meeting production targets ahead of schedule, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said. Combined with the 400 Harpoon anti-ship missiles Taiwan expects to receive from the US by 2028, the nation would have
North Korea yesterday fired about 10 ballistic missiles to the sea toward Japan, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, days after Pyongyang warned of “terrible consequences” over ongoing South Korea-US military drills. Pyongyang recently dashed hopes of a diplomatic thaw with Seoul, Washington’s security ally, describing its latest peace efforts as a “clumsy, deceptive farce.” Seoul’s military detected “around 10 ballistic missiles launched from the Sunan area in North Korea toward the East Sea [Sea of Japan] at around 1:20pm,” JCS said in a statement, referring to South Korea’s name for the body of water. The missiles
‘UNWAVERING FRIENDSHIP’: A representative of a Japanese group that co-organized a memorial, said he hopes Japanese never forget Taiwan’s kindness President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday marked the 15th anniversary of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, urging continued cooperation between Taiwan and Japan on disaster prevention and humanitarian assistance. Lai wrote on social media that Taiwan and Japan have always helped each other in the aftermath of major disasters. The magnitude 9 earthquake struck northeastern Japan on March 11, 2011, triggering a massive tsunami that claimed more than 19,000 lives, according to data from Japanese authorities. Following the disaster, Taiwan donated more than US$240 million in aid, making it one of the largest contributors of financial assistance to Japan. In addition to cash donations and
North Korea tested nuclear-capable rocket launchers, state media reported yesterday, a day after Seoul detected the launch of about 10 ballistic missiles. The test comes after South Korean and US forces launched their springtime military drills, due to run until Thursday. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Saturday oversaw the testing of the multiple rocket launcher system (MRLS), the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The test involved 12 600mm-caliber ultra-precision multiple rocket launchers and two artillery companies, it said. Kim said the drill gave Pyongyang’s enemies, within the 420km striking range, a sense of “uneasiness” and “a deep understanding
RSS