President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday pledged to improve diplomatic ties with the nation’s allies as it was reported that El Salvador was moving to establish ties with China.
He said that the government would not recognize diplomatic ties between Taiwan’s allies and China.
“Dual recognition is not what we are pursuing. The government will focus its efforts on strengthening ties with its allies,” Ma told reporters at the Presidential Office.
Salvadoran president-elect Mauricio Funes has repeatedly promised to switch ties to Beijing upon taking office in June.
Ma said more and more countries in Latin America were electing leftist national leaders, but his administration would seek to maintain ties with existing allies, regardless of their political ideology.
“Our diplomatic truce with the mainland does not mean that we are having a diplomatic vacation and it certainly doesn’t mean a diplomatic coma. We will continue strengthening ties with our allies and promoting relations with non-allies,” he said.
In discussing the nation’s bid for an observership at the World Health Assembly (WHA) in May, the president promised to defend Taiwan’s sovereignty while seeking the observer status.
Ma said the government would apply for observer status under the name “Republic of China,” “Taiwan” or “Chinese Taipei,” and insisted that the nation would not join international organizations as part of China.
“Of course we will not return to international society as part of mainland China because it would be belittling our sovereignty ... We will not sacrifice our sovereignty and national dignity in return for participation in international organizations,” Ma said.
When asked to comment on his previous remarks that the government would conduct negotiations with China at an undisclosed location outside of Taiwan next month about the WHA bid, Ma declined to elaborate on the issue, but said the government would make public the negotiation results at a proper time.
The president defended his “diplomatic truce” with China and his flexible diplomacy policy, saying he was confident that these policies were having a positive impact on cross-strait relations.
Ma said the issue regarding Taiwan’s participation in the WHA should be handled under the “1992 consensus,” which pan-blue figures say means “one China, with each side having its own interpretation.”
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office Director Wang Yi (王毅) told CCTV earlier this month that he was “cautiously optimistic” on Taiwan’s bid to join the WHA as an observer.
The WHA, the decision-making body of the WHO, is scheduled to meet from May 18 to May 27 in Geneva, Switzerland.
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