Taiwan said yesterday it was willing to return to the negotiation table as long as the Philippines is prepared to abide by the 1996 aviation agreement.
"The key factor in restarting talks hinges on the 1996 agreement," said foreign ministry spokesman Henry Chen (3粉坌F).
"As of this afternoon, we have not received any formal statement from Manila recognizing the 1996 agreement," he said.
Deputy foreign minister David Lee (
Ebdalin yesterday told the Taipei Times that he has not submitted a formal statement on Manila's stance on the 1996 agreement because "there is no need, [the foreign ministry] did not ask for it ... I already mentioned that in the parliamentary hearing."
Ebdalin visited Taipei last week to attend a public hearing held at the Legislative Yuan but held no formal talks with Taiwan officials on resuming direct flights.
He did, however, dispatch a statement to the Philippine Airlines office in Taipei instructing the company to clarify the status of the 1996 agreement.
"Please clarify to any interested party that the MECO-TECO air service agreement has not been terminated, contrary to the impression of the government and people in Taiwan," the statement said.
"What was terminated or suspended were flights. Termination of the agreement and termination of flights are different things," the document said.
The document states the point of dispute is the annex attached to the main agreement, which stipulates the passenger capacity and route schedule.
Taiwan suspended direct flights to the Philippines after Manila refused to budge on its demand of a combined quota of 3,000 seats per week for China Airlines and EVA Airways.
The Philippines' Civil Aeronautics Board has also issued a press statement saying it would cancel the 1996 aviation agreement unless Taiwan accepted the quota.
However, Manila is now saying it was ready to compromise with Taipei, after rejecting Taiwan's offer of 6,500 seats per week.
"We were made to understand that they would not be sticking anymore to the 6,500 [passenger quota] and we told them we will not stick to our 3,000," Philippine assistant foreign secretary Franklin Ebdalin told the local SNN television network in an interview.
"So we are more-or-less agreed on looking for a compromise between 3,000 and 6,500 ... The future is flexible," he said.
Manila newspapers quoted him as saying he had asked Taiwan officials to accept the 3,000 figure for one month and that they could talk again after that.
"We'll look for a compromise solution," the Philippine Daily Inquirer newspaper quoted him as saying.
President Lee Teng-hui (
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