Premier Vincent Siew, the KMT's vice presidential candidate, used the occasion of his last administrative report as premier to the legislature yesterday to boost a proposal made by Vice President and KMT presidential candidate Lien Chan (
The proposal came as part of Lien's China policy, unveiled on Thursday.
Central to the peace zone concept is the opening of direct commercial, communications and transportation links between China and the islands of Kinmen and Matsu, the so-called "little three links" (
"In the coming period, we will seek to eliminate differences of opinion between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait. We hope to replace confrontation between the two sides with dialogue and interchange. At the same time, we will actively promote the establishment of a peace zone [in Kinmen and Matsu] in the Strait," Siew said.
Siew pointed out however that the proposal did not mean the relaxation of security around the islands.
"We also have to realize that before China's military threats to Taiwan are gone, Taiwan will not give up its defensive build-up efforts," Siew said.
However, the peace zone proposal got a mixed reception from the legislature.
KMT lawmaker Tsao Erh-chung (
New Party lawmaker Li Chu-feng (
"It reminds me of the bridge the government promised to build to connect Kinmen proper and Little Kinmen island years ago. Every time there was an election, the bridge plan would be brought up," Li said. "Eight years have passed now. The bridge exists only people's talk."
Siew also said that while the government's "go slow, be patient" stance on cross-strait investment is the current policy, it is by no means unchangeable.
He added that if cross-strait relations are markedly improved, and the rights of Taiwan businessmen duly protected, the policy could be adjusted.
Siew noted several successes of his Cabinet including the nation's emerging unscathed from the regional financial storm and weathering the 921 earthquake last year.
He also said that the government will push for a new wave of reforms and try to root out "black gold" politics, adding that substantive measures in this regard include the promulgation of the law regarding disclosure of the assets of civil servants, and the government procurement law.
The government would also work on the Political Party Law, the Law Governing Political Donations and the Lobbying Law, Siew said.
Siew was initially scheduled to talk yesterday about the purchase of Patriot PAC-III missile systems from the US and deployment of them in central and southern Taiwan.
However, sources said that the content about missiles was removed from Siew's speech for fear that premature exposure of the deployment plan might encourage China to lodge protests with the US leading to possible cancellation of the deal.
US Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott concluded two days of talks in Beijing yesterday in which he had what he described as "intense" discussions with Chinese officials relating to Taiwan's security concerns.
A Chinese freighter that allegedly snapped an undersea cable linking Taiwan proper to Penghu County is suspected of being owned by a Chinese state-run company and had docked at the ports of Kaohsiung and Keelung for three months using different names. On Tuesday last week, the Togo-flagged freighter Hong Tai 58 (宏泰58號) and its Chinese crew were detained after the Taipei-Penghu No. 3 submarine cable was severed. When the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) first attempted to detain the ship on grounds of possible sabotage, its crew said the ship’s name was Hong Tai 168, although the Automatic Identification System (AIS)
CHANGE OF MIND: The Chinese crew at first showed a willingness to cooperate, but later regretted that when the ship arrived at the port and refused to enter Togolese Republic-registered Chinese freighter Hong Tai (宏泰號) and its crew have been detained on suspicion of deliberately damaging a submarine cable connecting Taiwan proper and Penghu County, the Coast Guard Administration said in a statement yesterday. The case would be subject to a “national security-level investigation” by the Tainan District Prosecutors’ Office, it added. The administration said that it had been monitoring the ship since 7:10pm on Saturday when it appeared to be loitering in waters about 6 nautical miles (11km) northwest of Tainan’s Chiang Chun Fishing Port, adding that the ship’s location was about 0.5 nautical miles north of the No.
An Akizuki-class destroyer last month made the first-ever solo transit of a Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ship through the Taiwan Strait, Japanese government officials with knowledge of the matter said yesterday. The JS Akizuki carried out a north-to-south transit through the Taiwan Strait on Feb. 5 as it sailed to the South China Sea to participate in a joint exercise with US, Australian and Philippine forces that day. The Japanese destroyer JS Sazanami in September last year made the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s first-ever transit through the Taiwan Strait, but it was joined by vessels from New Zealand and Australia,
COORDINATION, ASSURANCE: Separately, representatives reintroduced a bill that asks the state department to review guidelines on how the US engages with Taiwan US senators on Tuesday introduced the Taiwan travel and tourism coordination act, which they said would bolster bilateral travel and cooperation. The bill, proposed by US senators Marsha Blackburn and Brian Schatz, seeks to establish “robust security screenings for those traveling to the US from Asia, open new markets for American industry, and strengthen the economic partnership between the US and Taiwan,” they said in a statement. “Travel and tourism play a crucial role in a nation’s economic security,” but Taiwan faces “pressure and coercion from the Chinese Communist Party [CCP]” in this sector, the statement said. As Taiwan is a “vital trading
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