During a speech to the Honduran legislature on Wednesday, Premier Yu Shyi-kun referred to "Taiwan, ROC" 15 times. This usage differs from conventional references to the "Republic of China" when dealing with allies, and is a considerable
improvement.
The government has a duty to cast off national baggage. By using the term "Taiwan, ROC," Yu helps the nation's allies and the governments and peoples of other countries to understand that Taiwan is now a different political entity from that which proclaimed itself the "Republic of China" under Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) rule.
"Taiwan, ROC" is admittedly still a peculiar title and one that does not quite reflect the political reality. But at least it underlines the country's distinctive political, economic, cultural and social
features.
Members of the international community will now know that the title refers to Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu and the 23 million people who live here.
They will be less likely to confuse "Republic of China" with China. Reported confusion in Honduras over this distinction has thereby been dealt with elegantly by Yu and his delegation on their tour of the Americas.
When former president Chiang Kai-shek's (
Almost 60 years have passed since KMT rule was brought to Taiwan by the Chiang family, and today, most people have nothing to do with China beyond a limited number of businessman.
Under such circumstances, how can Taiwan possibly be a part of China? If such territorial ideas
are applied consistently, then the Republic of Mongolia, the Korean peninsula, Okinawa and even Vietnam could still be considered to be parts of Chinese territory.
Unfortunately, most countries have yielded to political pressure and have accepted this dangerous idea as the price of diplomatic ties with an increasingly desperate Beijing.
No one can deny that people on both side of the Taiwan Strait belong to two completely different countries. Taiwan has already been through three free presidential elections and, as of 2000, the KMT, which ruled Taiwan for 50 years, lost the mandate to govern.
Taiwan has become a normal democratic country in which the right to govern can change hands. Given this, Taiwan clearly needs a specific and recognizable name to announce to the international community that it is a country cultivating democracy, freedom and the rule of law.
This will also show that Taiwan has never belonged to communist China, and that there is no reason for it to be considered a regional government under the authority of China.
Irrespective of whether we refer to the nation in future as "Taiwan, ROC" or some other name, its territory, its borders and the people under its jurisdiction have absolutely nothing to do with China.
It is employment pass renewal season in Singapore, and the new regime is dominating the conversation at after-work cocktails on Fridays. From September, overseas employees on a work visa would need to fulfill the city-state’s new points-based system, and earn a minimum salary threshold to stay in their jobs. While this mirrors what happens in other countries, it risks turning foreign companies away, and could tarnish the nation’s image as a global business hub. The program was announced in 2022 in a bid to promote fair hiring practices. Points are awarded for how a candidate’s salary compares with local peers, along
China last month enacted legislation to punish —including with the death penalty — “die-hard Taiwanese independence separatists.” The country’s leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), need to be reminded about what the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has said and done in the past. They should think about whether those historical figures were also die-hard advocates of Taiwanese independence. The Taiwanese Communist Party was established in the Shanghai French Concession in April 1928, with a political charter that included the slogans “Long live the independence of the Taiwanese people” and “Establish a republic of Taiwan.” The CCP sent a representative, Peng
Japan and the Philippines on Monday signed a defense agreement that would facilitate joint drills between them. The pact was made “as both face an increasingly assertive China,” and is in line with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr’s “effort to forge security alliances to bolster the Philippine military’s limited ability to defend its territorial interests in the South China Sea,” The Associated Press (AP) said. The pact also comes on the heels of comments by former US deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger, who said at a forum on Tuesday last week that China’s recent aggression toward the Philippines in
The Ministry of National Defense on Tuesday announced that the military would hold its annual Han Kuang exercises from July 22 to 26. Military officers said the exercises would feature unscripted war games, and a decentralized command and control structure. This year’s exercises underline the recent reforms in Taiwan’s military as it transitions from a top-down command structure to one where autonomy is pushed down to the front lines to improve decisionmaking and adaptability. Militaries around the world have been observing and studying Russia’s war in Ukraine. They have seen that the Ukrainian military has been much quicker to adapt to