Chen Chien-jen (程建人), who served as minister of foreign affairs from 1999 to 2000, has died, a source said yesterday.
Chen was 86.
The source, who requested anonymity, said that Chen passed away at 10pm on Friday.
Photo: Lo Pei-de, Taipei Times
No further details were provided.
The diplomat was born in Shanghai in 1939. He moved to Taiwan as a child and graduated from National Chengchi University’s Department of Diplomacy in 1960. He later pursued advanced studies at the University of Cambridge.
In 1967, Chen joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and held diplomatic posts throughout his career, including serving as first secretary in the political section of Taiwan’s embassy in Washington.
During former US president Jimmy Carter’s administration, when the US severed official diplomatic ties with the Republic of China (Taiwan), Chen frequently accompanied then-vice minister of foreign affairs Yang Hsi-kun (楊西崑) to negotiations at the US Department of State.
Chen later recalled that it was the “coldest winter” he had ever experienced during his years in Washington.
After his time in the diplomatic service, Chen was a lawmaker from 1993 to 1996. In the following years, he served as minister of the now-defunct Government Information Office and as representative to the US from 2000 to 2004.
Even after retiring, Chen frequently gave media interviews, reflecting on Taiwan-US ties and offering commentary on the country’s foreign policy decisions.
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