Taiwan was mentioned at the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) last week, but there was no “surprise” and the nation was not treated as a bargaining chip between the two powers, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday.
Unnamed US senior officials on Tuesday briefed Taipei regarding the summit.
The Taiwan issue, which was not made public previously, was raised by Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) at a closed-door meeting in the US on Saturday, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Leo Lee (李澄然) said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee in Taipei.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
“They did bring up the [Taiwan] issue, but the discussion was very brief. The US made a stereotyped reply based on its long-held position on the issue, with the Taiwan Relations Act [TRA] part of that reply,” Lee said.
Taiwan was not used as a bargaining chip during the negotiations or forced to take sides with the either party, Lee said.
The major significance of the summit was the engagement of the US and China in a “comprehensive dialogue” and a means by which the Trump administration could build a new cooperation framework with Beijing, but the effectiveness of the framework has been questioned, because key diplomatic and defense officials are yet to be appointed as infighting in the Trump team continues, the ministry said.
The summit was centered on the US’ attempt to convince China to rein in North Korea’s nuclear threat, while Taiwan, “as a responsible regional player, is cooperating with UN sanctions against North Korea, such as banning coal imports from North Korea,” Lee said.
While Washington and Beijing are on a course to redefine their bilateral framework, Taiwan should seek to deepen Taiwan-US trade relations with existing trade pacts, and the ministry would seek US reassurance that it would continue to approve arms sales to Taiwan in accordance with the TRA and the “six assurances.”
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lo Chih-cheng (羅致政) asked whether the US would delay arms sales to Taiwan due to Chinese pressure, citing a report that the National Security Bureau submitted to the committee warning about potential delays in arms sales or changes to the weapons available to Taiwan due to Beijing’s influence, despite promises from the Trump administration that there would be no trade-offs involving Taiwan’s status or arms sales.
There were no such warnings in reports from the ministry and the Mainland Affairs Council, which evaluated the effect of the Trump-Xi meeting on Taiwan.
Lee said the ministry was “more optimistic” about securing US arms sales, despite Chinese pressure, as US officials reiterated the US’ “one China” policy and the TRA three times ahead of the summit, a rare move that has been interpreted as a reassurance from Washington that it remains committed to Taiwan’s security.
New Power Party Legislator Freddy Lim (林昶佐) said that the government should pursue deeper ties with the US.
“While it is time to advance Taiwan-US relations, what the government seeks is to maintain the TRA and the six assurances, but we have to break away from the existing framework and seek further political promises and recognition,” Lim said.
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
NO CHANGE: The TRA makes clear that the US does not consider the status of Taiwan to have been determined by WWII-era documents, a former AIT deputy director said The American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) comments that World War-II era documents do not determine Taiwan’s political status accurately conveyed the US’ stance, the US Department of State said. An AIT spokesperson on Saturday said that a Chinese official mischaracterized World War II-era documents as stating that Taiwan was ceded to the China. The remarks from the US’ de facto embassy in Taiwan drew criticism from the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, whose director said the comments put Taiwan in danger. The Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday reported that a US State Department spokesperson confirmed the AIT’s position. They added that the US would continue to
IMPORTANT BACKER: China seeks to expel US influence from the Indo-Pacific region and supplant Washington as the global leader, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said China is preparing for war to seize Taiwan, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said in Washington on Friday, warning that Taiwan’s fall would trigger a regional “domino effect” endangering US security. In a speech titled “Maintaining the Peaceful and Stable Status Quo Across the Taiwan Strait is in Line with the Shared Interests of Taiwan and the United States,” Chiu said Taiwan’s strategic importance is “closely tied” to US interests. Geopolitically, Taiwan sits in a “core position” in the first island chain — an arc stretching from Japan, through Taiwan and the Philippines, to Borneo, which is shared by
RSS