The US allowed a Republic of China (ROC) military plane from Taiwan to transit its territory for the first time in 30 years, officials said yesterday.
The cargo plane made a stop inside US territory while carrying relief supplies to Haiti, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said.
“We have approved Taiwan’s request for a cargo airplane to refuel in the US and in US territories in order to reach Haiti as quickly as possible. We are doing possible to ensure needed emergency supplies reach Haiti expeditiously. This is part of that effort,” AIT press officer Christopher Kavanagh said.
AIT declined to give further details and asked the media to refer all questions to Taiwan’s government. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, however, refused to comment, saying it had no information at the moment.
Asked if Washington had discussed the issue with Beijing prior to giving the green light, Kavanagh told Agence France Presse “there is no need” as the approval was given on humanitarian grounds.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu (馬朝旭) reacted to the news by saying: “We oppose any government, including the United States, from having any official contact with Taiwan.”
The Chinese-language United Daily News identified the aircraft as a C-130 air force transport plane and said the stop was for refueling.
In other developments, a 65-member Taiwan Root Medical Peace Corps team landed in the Dominican Republic capital of Santo Domingo on Wednesday and was scheduled to drive into Haiti yesterday. It is the third team from Taiwan to go to Haiti.
A team of 23 rescue workers and two dogs from the National Fire Agency and Taichung City Fire Department is en route to Taiwan, said Chen Chia-chun (陳家駿), minister extraordinary of the ROC embassy in the Dominican Republic.
A group of 33 members of the Red Cross Society of The Republic of China, a Taipei City international rescue squad, and a Tri-Service General Hospital will return home in the next two days, Chen said.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY JENNY W. HSU
Typhoon Usagi yesterday had weakened into a tropical storm, but a land warning issued by the Central Weather Administration (CWA) was still in effect in four areas in southern Taiwan. As of 5pm yesterday, Tropical Storm Usagi was over waters 120km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), the southernmost tip of Taiwan proper, and was moving north at 9kph, CWA data showed. The storm was expected to veer northeast later yesterday. It had maximum sustained winds of 101kph, with gusts of up to 126kph, the data showed. The CWA urged residents of Kaohsiung, Pingtung County, Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春) to remain alert to
ONE LAST TALK: While Xi said that Taiwan was a ‘red line,’ Biden, in what is likely his last meeting with Xi as president, called for an end to China’s military activity around Taiwan China’s military intimidation and economic coercion against Taiwan are the main causes of tensions that are destabilizing peace in the Taiwan Strait, Taipei said yesterday while thanking US President Joe Biden for expressing Washington’s firm stance of maintaining peace and stability in the region. Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) met on Saturday for their third meeting and their first talks in seven months on the sidelines of the APEC forum in Lima, Peru. It was likely Biden’s last meeting as president with Xi. During their conversation, Biden reiterated the US’ opposition to any unilateral change to the “status quo” from either
Taiwan would participate in the 2026 APEC summit to be hosted by China after Beijing promised it would ensure the personal safety of attendees, Taiwanese national security sources said yesterday. The APEC Leaders’ Machu Picchu Declaration announced yesterday said that China would host the APEC summit in 2026. Beijing proposed hosting the summit shortly before this year’s gathering began on Friday, a national security official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Many APEC members expressed concerns about China hosting the event and said that prior communication over the decision was insufficient, the official said. Taiwan brought up concerns about legal “guidelines” China announced in
MEET AND GREET: The White House, which called the interaction ‘just a handshake,’ did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether Biden planned to visit Taiwan’s envoy to the APEC summit, Lin Hsin-i (林信義), on Friday invited US President Joe Biden to visit Taiwan. During the APEC Leaders’ Informal Dialogue, Lin, who represented President William Lai (賴清德) at the summit, spoke with Biden and expressed gratitude to the outgoing US president for his contribution to improving bilateral ties between Taipei and Washington over the past four years, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Lin and Biden exchanged views during the conversation, with Lin extending an invitation to Biden to visit Taiwan, it said. Biden is to step down in January next year, when US president-elect Donald Trump is
RSS