President William Lai (賴清德) discussed the meaning of “nation” during a speech in New Taipei City last night, emphasizing that Taiwan is a country as he condemned China’s misinterpretation of UN Resolution 2758.
The speech was the first in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan.
It is the responsibility of Taiwanese citizens to stand united to defend their national sovereignty, democracy, liberty, way of life and the future of the next generation, Lai said.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
This is the most important legacy the people of this era could pass on to future generations, he said.
Lai went on to discuss the definition of a country, saying it must have four elements: citizens, land, government and sovereignty.
The people of Taiwan exercise public authority, engage in foreign diplomacy and maintain national defense capabilities, he said.
“Taiwan is of course a country,” as the 23 million people living here form a political community, Lai said.
Taiwan has democratically elected a president once every four years since 1996, Lai said.
From any perspective, the international community can see that Taiwan is indeed a country, he said.
Although China claims sovereignty over Taiwan under UN Resolution 2758, the resolution only deals with the issue of UN representation and does not mention Taiwan, Lai said.
The resolution was about restoring the rights of the People’s Republic of China as the representative of China in the UN by expelling the representatives of Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石), he said.
The four elements required to form a country do not include participation in the UN, so China cannot use this resolution to claim sovereignty over Taiwan, Lai said.
The US Department of State this year said that China has distorted the resolution and that it does not determine Taiwan’s sovereignty, he said.
Legislative bodies around the world, including those of the US, Australia, the Netherlands, Canada, the UK and European countries, have all passed Taiwan-related resolutions, declaring that UN Resolution 2758 does not pertain to Taiwan’s sovereignty, he added.
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