President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) administration is holding internal meetings to determine how Taiwan could cooperate with the UN resolution to impose sanctions on North Korea, the Presidential Office said yesterday.
Presidential Office Secretary-General Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said on the sidelines of an international forum hosted by the Taiwan National Security Institute (TNSI) that the government was discussing in detail how to deal with North Korea following its latest missile test on Friday.
Wu said Taiwan was discussing measures in response to the newest sanctions against North Korea imposed by the UN Security Council through Resolution 2375.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
The sanctions imposed on Monday include a ban on the supply, sale and transfer of all condensates (the liquid phase produced by the condensation of gas) and natural gas liquids to North Korea, as well as a ban on its exports of textiles.
However, TNSI chairman Richard Chen (陳重光) said Taiwan did not have much to offer to add weight to the UN resolution.
The nation has very little trade with North Korea and has no official relationship with the country, Chen said.
He added that the government’s actions, which he approved of, were meant to show support for the free world.
However, “in reality, what power can we wield?” he asked. “Not a lot, I think.”
Despite the minor role the nation can play in addressing the North Korean issue, the fact remains that the recent escalation and instability in the Asia-Pacific region concerns the country deeply.
Wu pointed to shifts in national defense strategies adopted by both Japan and the US as an indication that Taiwan needs to be prepared, too.
“We need to be prepared to protect Taiwan’s interests,” he said.
However, Chen said some people believe Taiwan’s biggest threat is that its people lack awareness of threats.
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