Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) yesterday said the annual Shanghai-Taipei Twin-City Forum would be held in China this year, as city councilors questioned if he was going back on a promise not to attend if Chinese military aircraft continued to harass Taiwan.
During a city council meeting, Chiang said that the forum would be held in Shanghai in July or August, under the theme of “new trends, new challenges.”
Regarding whether he would attend the forum — as there are concerns over his background, given he is purportedly the great grandson of former president Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) — he said that a city task force would discuss the details, and Taipei Deputy Secretary-General Wang Chiu-tung (王秋冬) would visit Shanghai for preliminary discussions.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) city councilors Yen Juo-fang (顏若芳) and Ho Meng-hua (何孟樺) asked Chiang Wan-an whether he was reneging on an election campaign promise.
While running for office last year, he said the forum should only be held under certain conditions, including that “Chinese military aircraft no longer harass Taiwan.”
Chiang Wan-an said he would uphold the principles of mutual respect and reciprocity, and would comply with the Constitution and the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例).
Ho said that the city government has been taken advantage of in previous forums, and asked the mayor how he would stand up for Taiwan.
Chiang Wan-an said that the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has recognized the forum in the past, so if the city councilors are questioning the forum, they are questioning the MAC, too.
DPP Taipei City Councilor Wang Shih-chien (王世堅) said Chiang Wan-an should insist that Taipei is not “paying a tribute” to Shanghai, and the forum should not be treated as exchanges between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Chinese Communist Party.
DPP Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said that the benefits of holding the forum are decreasing, and Taipei should consider holding twin-city forums with other cities, such as Tokyo or Kyoto.
Trips for more than 100,000 international and domestic air travelers could be disrupted as China launches a military exercise around Taiwan today, Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said yesterday. The exercise could affect nearly 900 flights scheduled to enter the Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR) during the exercise window, it added. A notice issued by the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration showed there would be seven temporary zones around the Taiwan Strait which would be used for live-fire exercises, lasting from 8am to 6pm today. All aircraft are prohibited from entering during exercise, it says. Taipei FIR has 14 international air routes and
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
The Ministry of National Defense (MND) today released images of the military tracking China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) movements during the latest round of Chinese drills around Taiwan. The PLA began "Justice Mission 2025" drills today, carrying out live-fire drills, simulated strikes on land and maritime targets, and exercises to blockade the nation's main ports. The exercises are to continue tomorrow, with the PLA announcing sea and air space restrictions for five zones around Taiwan for 10 hours starting from 8:30am. The ministry today released images showing a Chinese J-16 fighter jet tracked by a F-16V Block 20 jet and the
City buses in Taipei and New Taipei City, as well as the Taipei MRT, would on Saturday begin accepting QR code payments from five electronic payment providers, the Taipei Department of Transportation said yesterday. The new option would allow passengers to use the “transportation QR code” feature from EasyWallet, iPass Money, iCash Pay, Jkopay or PXPay Plus. Passengers should open their preferred electronic payment app, select the “transportation code” — not the regular payment code — unlock it, and scan the code at ticket readers or gates, General Planning Division Director-General Liu Kuo-chu (劉國著) said. People should move through the
RSS