The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday thanked members of the Dutch House of Representatives for passing a motion on Sept. 11 calling for Taiwan’s meaningful participation in international organizations.
The motion, introduced by Jan Paternotte of the Democrats 66 party, who also serves as cochair of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China for the Netherlands, was backed by lawmakers across party lines. It passed with 147 votes in favor and three against.
The motion stated that UN Resolution 2758 “addresses the representation of China in the UN, but does not stipulate that the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has sovereignty over Taiwan, nor does it make any statements about Taiwan’s participation in the UN or other international organizations.”
Photo: Reuters
It said the Netherlands, together with other democracies, has a responsibility to resist threats and intimidation targeting free and democratic societies.
The motion also said that the Netherlands has an interest in Taiwan’s representation at the WHO, the International Civil Aviation Organization, the UN Climate Change Conference and the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol).
It called on the Dutch government to “actively advocate for Taiwan’s meaningful participation during the UN General Assembly and at annual meetings of UN organizations and to submit proposals to this end, together with other countries, and proceed to the agenda.”
MOFA yesterday expressed its appreciation to members of the Dutch House of Representatives for their strong support for Taiwan during the General Assembly session, which runs from Sept. 9 to Tuesday next week.
The latest motion builds on four others passed by the Dutch parliament in April, which included calls for the Dutch government to condemn Chinese military escalation, send a government-level delegation to Taiwan, deepen bilateral trade ties and support Taiwan’s participation in the WHO, the ministry said.
Reaffirming the long-standing friendship between Taiwan and the Netherlands, the ministry said Taiwan would continue to expand cooperation with the Netherlands in key areas, including semiconductor supply chain resilience, information security management and next-generation communications.
US President Donald Trump said "it’s up to" Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) what China does on Taiwan, but that he would be "very unhappy" with a change in the "status quo," the New York Times said in an interview published yesterday. Xi "considers it to be a part of China, and that’s up to him what he’s going to be doing," Trump told the newspaper on Wednesday. "But I’ve expressed to him that I would be very unhappy if he did that, and I don’t think he’ll do that," he added. "I hope he doesn’t do that." Trump made the comments in
NOT AN OPENING: Trump’s violation of international law does not affect China’s consideration in attacking Taiwan; Beijing lacks capability, not precedent, an official said Taiwanese officials see the US’ capture of the president of Venezuela as a powerful deterrent to Beijing’s aggression and a timely reminder of the US’ ability to defeat militaries equipped with Chinese-made weapons. The strikes that toppled Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro signaled to authoritarian leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), US President Donald Trump’s willingness to use military might for international affairs core to US interests, one senior official in Taipei’s security circle said. That reassured Taiwan, the person said. Taipei has also dismissed the idea that Trump’s apparent violation of international law could embolden Beijing, said the official, who was not
A cold surge advisory was today issued for 18 cities and counties across Taiwan, with temperatures of below 10°C forecast during the day and into tonight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. New Taipei City, Taipei, Taoyuan and Hsinchu, Miaoli and Yilan counties are expected to experience sustained temperatures of 10°C or lower, the CWA said. Temperatures are likely to temporarily drop below 10°C in most other areas, except Taitung, Pingtung, Penghu and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, CWA data showed. The cold weather is being caused by a strong continental cold air mass, combined with radiative cooling, a process in which heat escapes from
Snow this morning fell on Alishan for the first time in seven years, as a strong continental cold air mass sent temperatures plunging across Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The Alishan weather station, located at an elevation of about 2,200m in central Taiwan, recorded snowfall from 8:55am to 9:15am, when the temperature dropped to about 1°C, the CWA said. With increased moisture and low temperatures in the high-altitude Alishan area, the conditions were favorable for snow, CWA forecaster Tsai Yi-chi (蔡伊其) said. The last time snow fell at the Alishan weather station was on Jan. 10, 2018, while graupel fell there