Vice President Annette Lu (
"We should not focus only on tough words in the statements made by the Beijing authorities around the time of [our] inauguration," Lu said during an interview with the Central Broadcasting System (CBS).
Despite opposition claims that Beijing is nearing the limit of its patience with the Democratic Progressive Party government, Lu said that the cross-strait relationship has improved and that goodwill from both sides is on show.
"Those remarks, including the statement issued on May 17 by China's state-run institute for journalism, President Chen's inauguration speech and the official reaction from Beijing on May 24 have offered some space for positive developments," Lu said.
"The Beijing authorities have always sounded off at Taiwan whenever we expressed our intention to march toward democracy and expand the country's visibility in the international community. This time they have demonstrated this in a manner more modest than ever before," she said.
"I would say that the leaders on both sides of the Strait have began an `air dialogue' and are creating bases for communication."
Lu also said that representing the president while visiting three of the nation's allies in Central America, as well as stopovers in the US, will show that the relationship with the US is on track.
"After President Chen pledged to carry out Taiwan's first referendum, some tensions were created both locally and overseas. Some people worried that such developments would affect Taiwan's situation and the US-Taiwan friendship. My visit to our allies and the short stopover in the US -- our best friend -- should indicate that we are now finally enjoying the coming of another spring," Lu said.
Lu has advocated a new "cross-strait" relationship between East Asia and the Americas and is hoping this trip will strengthen the bridge between Taiwan and countries on the other side of the Pacific.
"I would like to express my gratitude to the US government for supporting Taiwan joining the Organization of American States (OAS) as an observer," Lu said during her farewell speech at the airport. "I expect to return with concrete results facilitating Taiwan's bid to expand its international space."
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
RSS