Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), who is on an 11-day trip to the US, on Thursday described Taiwan’s ties with the US as the “most important” such relationship in several key areas.
The “Taiwan-US relationship is the most important” one in terms of Taiwan’s security, national defense, and trade and economy, Chu told a news conference in San Francisco, which was livestreamed on the KMT’s Facebook page.
The KMT welcomes the US and other countries to increase collaboration with Taiwan, Chu said, adding that the party would not “recoil” from the pressure of China.
Photo courtesy of the KMT
“We will insist on matters that benefit Taiwan and the people of the Republic of China,” he said, citing as examples the improvement of Taiwan’s defense capabilities and the US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st Century Trade, a mechanism for trade talks that was announced earlier this week.
Chu said the KMT remains dedicated to serving a critical role in maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait while contributing to peace in the Asia-Pacific region.
However, the KMT would not solely rely on Taiwan’s ties with the US to preserve the country’s security, he said.
The KMT would continue seeking dialogue with Beijing and fostering exchanges between the two sides to prevent a conflict or war in the Taiwan Strait, Chu said.
The news conference was held shortly before Chu departed for Washington, where he was scheduled to meet with US government officials, lawmakers and think tank representatives, the KMT said.
In Washington, Chu would attend a plaque-unveiling ceremony for the KMT’s liaison office and give a keynote speech at the Brookings Institution think tank.
The KMT chairman embarked on the US tour from Taipei on Thursday morning.
During his brief stay in San Francisco, the trip’s first stop, Chu visited the Hoover Institution at Stanford University to exchange views with academics on issues of interest to Taiwan and the US, and met with representatives of the overseas Taiwanese community, the KMT said.
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