Ahead of former US President Ronald Reagan's state funeral in Washington today, government officials, diplomats and the people of Taiwan paid respects to the Taiwan-friendly US leader by signing a book of condolences provided by the American Cultural Center in Taipei yesterday.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement praising Reagan's long-time support for Taiwan's democracy.
"Mr. Reagan was a firm friend of all democracies. Our government and people deeply regret the passing away of the former US president," the statement said. "President Chen Shui-bian (
The ministry has decided to send Control Yuan President Frederick Chien (
"Chien has a close relationship with the US and had opportunities to meet Reagan on many occasions. He is the right person to represent Taiwan to join Reagan's funeral," Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Michael Kau said after signing the book of condolences.
Chien and his wife departed for Washington yesterday afternoon.
Chen Chien-jen (
Kau described the "Six Assurances," which the Reagan administration gave Taipei in July 1982, as one of the most important milestones in Taiwan-US relations.
In the Six Assurances, the Reagan administration promised Taiwan that it would not set a date for the ending of arms sales to Taiwan; not consult with China on arms sales; not play a mediation role between the People's Republic of China (PRC) and Taiwan; not revise the Taiwan Relations Act; change its position regarding sovereignty over Taiwan; nor exert pressure on Taipei to enter into negotiations with Beijing.
The Six Assurances came as the Reagan administration's efforts to soften the blow to Taiwan after the US and China signed the 817 Communique, which called for a reduction of US arms sales to Taiwan.
Judith Mudd-Krijgelmans, spokesperson for the American Institute in Taiwan, thanked Kau for the ministry's condolence.
"We will always remember the `Great Communicator,' especially for his support for US public diplomacy," Judith wrote in the book of condolences of her memory of the victor of the Cold War, one of whose most famous quotes is "the march of freedom and democracy will leave Marxism-Leninism on the ash heap of history."
Reagan visited Taiwan twice during the 1970s. On Oct. 9, 1971, Reagan, then the governor of California, arrived at Taipei as former US President Richard Nixon's special representative to attend the Republic of China's (ROC) National Day celebrations on Oct. 10.
Reagan, accompanied by his wife. Nancy Reagan, said upon arrival in Taipei that he carried a message of good will from Nixon to Chiang Kai-shek (
In 1978, one year before the US switched recognition from Taipei to Beijing, Reagan again visited Taipei by invitation of Koo Chen-fu (辜振甫), now chairman of the Straits Exchange Foundation, to deliver a speech at a conference hosted by the Sino-American Cultural and Economic Association.
There are 77 incidents of Taiwanese travelers going missing in China between January last year and last month, the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) said. More than 40 remain unreachable, SEF Secretary-General Luo Wen-jia (羅文嘉) said on Friday. Most of the reachable people in the more than 30 other incidents were allegedly involved in fraud, while some had disappeared for personal reasons, Luo said. One of these people is Kuo Yu-hsuan (郭宇軒), a 22-year-old Taiwanese man from Kaohsiung who went missing while visiting China in August. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office last month said in a news statement that he was under investigation
‘JOINT SWORD’: Whatever President Lai says in his Double Ten speech, China would use it as a pretext to launch ‘punishment’ drills for his ‘separatist’ views, an official said China is likely to launch military drills this week near Taiwan, using President William Lai’s (賴清德) upcoming national day speech as a pretext to pressure the nation to accept its sovereignty claims, Taiwanese officials said. China in May launched “punishment” drills around Taiwan shortly after Lai’s inauguration, in what Beijing said was a response to “separatist acts,” sending heavily armed warplanes and staging mock attacks as state media denounced newly inaugurated Lai. The May drills were dubbed “Joint Sword — 2024A” and drew concerns from capitals, including Washington. Lai is to deliver a key speech on Thursday in front of the Presidential Office
An aviation jacket patch showing a Formosan black bear punching Winnie the Pooh has become popular overseas, including at an aviation festival held by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force at the Ashiya Airbase yesterday. The patch was designed last year by Taiwanese designer Hsu Fu-yu (徐福佑), who said that it was inspired by Taiwan’s countermeasures against frequent Chinese military aircraft incursions. The badge shows a Formosan black bear holding a Republic of China flag as it punches Winnie the Pooh — a reference to Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) — who is dressed in red and is holding a honey pot with
Taiwan was listed in 14th place among the world's wealthiest country in terms of GDP per capita, in the latest rankings released on Monday by Forbes magazine. Taiwan's GDP per capita was US$76,860, which put it at No. 14 on the list of the World's 100 Richest Countries this year, one spot above Hong Kong with US$75,130. The magazine's list of the richest countries in the world is compiled based on GDP per capita data, as estimated by the IMF. However, for a more precise measure of a nation's wealth, the magazine also considers purchasing power parity, which is a metric used to
RSS