Representative to Canada Harry Tseng (曾厚仁) on Sunday dismissed Chinese ads placed in a Canadian newspaper, calling them a sign of “doubt” in their own claims.
In an interview with the Toronto Sun, Tseng addressed a paid op-ed by the Chinese ambassador to Canada, published in the Hill Times on July 2, titled “The One-China Principle is indisputable, and the victory of WWII [World War II] must not be tampered with.”
The ad, written by Chinese Ambassador to Canada Wang Di (王鏑) drew “a bold, red line under China’s position on Taiwan, continuing China’s tendency toward hard-handed ‘wolf-warrior’ diplomacy,” the Toronto Sun reported.
Photo courtesy of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Canada
The Toronto Sun said that “a second ad, published on July 16, reads more like the usual public relations one would expect from a foreign embassy — with Wang celebrating a recent open house and the Ottawa dragon boat festival” in June.
In response to the ads, Tseng said: “If they consider the ‘One China principle’ as universal and accepted by most countries, why on Earth do they need to use this [the ad] to promulgate it?”
“Obviously, they are perhaps doubtful of what they claim,” Tseng was quoted as saying.
Alan Kessel, a senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute and a former Canadian diplomat, told the Toronto Sun that the ads were an attempt by Beijing to control the narrative.
“One message implies closer ties, while the other draws a red line around Taiwan, signaling the price of engagement,” Kessel was quoted as saying.
Kessel said that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney should pursue a China policy grounded in “Canadian values” instead of being dictated by “foreign authoritarian sensitivities.”
“That means rejecting coercion, resisting influence operations and affirming that our decisions on Taiwan are not shaped in Beijing, but in Ottawa,” the Toronto Sun quoted him as saying.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
Tropical Storm Fung-Wong would likely strengthen into a typhoon later today as it continues moving westward across the Pacific before heading in Taiwan’s direction next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. As of 8am, Fung-Wong was about 2,190km east-southeast of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving westward at 25kph and possibly accelerating to 31kph, CWA data showed. The tropical storm is currently over waters east of the Philippines and still far from Taiwan, CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said, adding that it could likely strengthen into a typhoon later in the day. It is forecast to reach the South China Sea
Almost a quarter of volunteer soldiers who signed up from 2021 to last year have sought early discharge, the Legislative Yuan’s Budget Center said in a report. The report said that 12,884 of 52,674 people who volunteered in the period had sought an early exit from the military, returning NT$895.96 million (US$28.86 million) to the government. In 2021, there was a 105.34 percent rise in the volunteer recruitment rate, but the number has steadily declined since then, missing recruitment targets, the Chinese-language United Daily News said, citing the report. In 2021, only 521 volunteers dropped out of the military, the report said, citing
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
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