The Presidential Office yesterday reiterated the nation’s commitment to peaceful cross-strait relations, despite Beijing’s use of its “one China” principle to continue to suppress Taiwan on the international stage.
While answering media queries during a news conference, Presidential Office spokesman Alex Huang (黃重諺) denied Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela’s claim that money had nothing to with his government’s decision to establish diplomatic ties with China.
Huang said it is clear from Beijing’s comments in June, when Panama switched recognition to Beijing, and from Varela’s statement during an interview with China Central Television (CCTV) yesterday that Taipei continues to face diplomatic challenges from Beijing’s manipulation of the “one China” principle and its continued use of checkbook diplomacy to suppress Taiwan internationally.
Varela told CCTV that Panama did not ask for anything from Beijing to establish ties with it.
“I think establishing diplomatic ties with China is the right decision for Panama and its people, and for the benefit of both countries,” he said.
The comments are in stark contrast to what Minister of Foreign Affairs David Lee (李大維) said when he broke the news of severed ties with Panama on June 13.
Varela “caved in” to Beijing for economic interests and ignored Taiwan’s long-term assistance, Lee said.
Huang said that Taiwan will continue to work to maintain cross-strait peace, which should be the responsibility and goal of both Taiwan and China.
On the subject of cross-strait exchanges, the spokesman said that politics should not influence cross-strait relations, nor should there be any inappropriate disturbance of each other’s diplomatic efforts.
“Only then can we achieve understanding across the strait and stimulate meaningful development and cooperation between both sides,” he added.
To this end, the administration will continue to make gestures of goodwill to Beijing in the hope of dissolving the animosity, Huang said.
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Taiwan's Gold Apollo Co (金阿波羅通信) said today that the pagers used in detonations in Lebanon the day before were not made by it, but by a company called BAC which has a license to use its brand. At least nine people were killed and nearly 3,000 wounded when pagers used by Hezbollah members detonated simultaneously across Lebanon yesterday. Images of destroyed pagers analyzed by Reuters showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo. A senior Lebanese security source told Reuters that Hezbollah had ordered 5,000 pagers from Taiwan-based Gold Apollo. "The product was not
COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai
RSS