Minister of Foreign Affairs Mark Chen (陳唐山) made a rushed departure for the US and Grenada ahead of schedule late on Friday night in the wake of allegations that former US State Department official Donald Keyser had passed confidential documents to Taiwanese intelligence agents and concealed a trip to Taiwan, the ministry announced yesterday.
While Chen had originally not been slated to arrive in Baltimore until tomorrow, ministry spokesman Michel Lu (呂慶龍) said that Chen made a last-minute decision to schedule a visit to Grenada, quietly leaving Taiwan ahead of schedule late on Friday night before the media got wind of his departure.
The ministry denied that the Chen's trip to the US was in any way an effort at damage control with regard to reports of Keyser's involvement with Taiwanese intelligence agents, saying that Chen had decided to visit Grenada to express concern over the damage that Hurricane Ivan had recently caused in the Caribbean nation.
However, Lu admitted that given the lack of direct flights to Grenada, Chen would be making a stopover in the US which would put him in the US ahead of schedule. While Lu declined to comment on whether Chen would be meeting with any officials in the US, the timing of Chen's trip has raised eyebrows.
"Minister Chen decided to visit Grenada to show concern for our diplomatic ally. Also, our embassy there was also damaged by the hurricane," Lu said, stressing that the trip had not been arranged because of the Keyser accusations. Lu added that the ministry had also donated US$200,000 to help Grenada rebuild in the aftermath of the hurricane.
Lu explained that Chen is scheduled to host an annual foreign ministry conference on North American affairs in Baltimore tomorrow. The conference is expected to bring together the heads of all 13 Taiwan representative offices in the US and three in Canada. While the ministry refrained from confirming whether the conference would involve discussion on the Keyser allegations, it is believed that the topic will be given attention.
In addition, Presidential Office Secretary-General Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) told reporters in Taipei County yesterday morning that the Keyser case was an investigation into a concealed trip to Taiwan, stressing that no evidence had been provided to verify allegations that intelligence had been leaked.
"Between Taiwan and the US, all dealings have been conducted in a public and transparent fashion. Taiwan would never violate US law," Su said, adding that Taiwan would fully cooperate with the US investigation.
"Intelligence reporting between the two nations has always been conducted in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Convention and Optional Protocols [1961]," Su said, "Taiwan and the US have always been on friendly terms."
Meanwhile, State Department Deputy Spokesman Adam Ereli said on Friday that US Secretary of State Colin Powell talked with Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing (
Ereli said that "they did not discuss Mr. Keyser's case," but talked about a draft resolution on Sudan that is currently being discussed by the UN Security Council and about how the US and China can work together in the context of the resolution to keep up the pressure on the government of Sudan and stop the atrocities being carried out there.
The US wants measures to be imposed on Khartoum to stop the killing, but China, which is a permanent member of the UN Security Council, does not, as it relies on Sudan for up to 25 percent of its oil.
Meanwhile, State Department Spokesman Richard Boucher said that as far as he knows, Keyser's decision to retire in July was a normal one, contradicting reports that said he retired abruptly.
Boucher said that "individuals decide to retire for their own reasons at their own time. I don't know why he made the decision at that time, but it was a normal retirement decision, as far as I know."
Boucher also said that replacing Keyser is Evans Revere, a career diplomat and senior foreign service officer who worked at the American Institute in Taiwan in 1980 and 1981 and can speak fluent Korean, Chinese and Japanese.
Also See Story:
Officials pull spy team from US
BAIL APPEALS: The former vice premier was ordered to be held incommunicado despite twice being granted bail and paying a total of NT$12 million in bond The Taoyuan District Court yesterday ordered the detention of former vice premier Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦), who is being investigated for alleged corruption while serving as Taoyuan mayor from December 2014 to December 2022, and that he be held incommunicado. The court made the ruling during a bail hearing after prosecutors appealed its bail ruling twice. Cheng on Saturday was released after posting bail of NT$5 million (US$153,818). However, after prosecutors lodged an appeal, the High Court on Monday revoked the original ruling and ordered the Taoyuan District Court to hold another bail hearing. On Tuesday, the district court granted bail to Cheng a second
The Thai government on Friday announced that Taiwanese would be allowed to stay in the country for up to 60 days per entry, under the Southeast Asian country’s visa-free program starting from today. Taiwan is among 93 countries included in the Thai visa-waiver program, which has been expanded from 57 countries, with the visa-exempt entry extended from 30 to 60 days. After taking office last year, Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has vowed to grant more visa waivers to foreign travelers as part of efforts to stimulate tourism. The expanded visa-waiver program was on Friday signed by Thai Minister of the Interior Anutin
PEACE AND SECURITY: China’s military ambitions present ‘the greatest strategic challenge to Japan and the world, Japan’s annual defense white paper said yesterday Japan yesterday warned that China risked escalating tensions with Taiwan with an increase in military exercises that appeared aimed in part at readying Beijing’s forces for a possible invasion. Japan’s annual assessment of security threats, including those posed by China, North Korea and Russia, comes as Taiwan closely monitors Chinese People’s Liberation Army air and sea exercises, including one with the Shandong aircraft carrier in the Pacific Ocean. The drills are the latest in a series including maneuvers in the Taiwan Strait last year that a senior US general said would be key to any invasion. “Because of that increase in military activity,
HAN KUANG: The exercises, which are to run from July 22 to 26, will feature unscripted war games and a decentralized command and control structure, military officers said The armed forces would for the first time test new rules of engagement (ROE) at this month’s annual Han Kuang exercises, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said yesterday. The exercises, which are to run from July 22 to 26, will feature unscripted war games, and a decentralized command and control structure, military officers told a news conference in Taipei. ROE cards would be issued to select combat troops to test their ability to function without tight control, they said. The most recent edition of the rules was published last year, they said. One of the cards’ two templates identifies enemy targets that soldiers