By studying the possibility of re-evaluating Mongolia's status as part of ROC territory, the Ministry of the Interior (MOI) is taking further steps toward recognizing it as an independent state.
The move follows revised Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) regulations exempting Outer Mongolia's citizens from outdated diplomatic visa rules.
"For practical reasons, we are pushing the proposal to recognize Mongolia as an independent country, striking Mongolia from the territory listed as part of the ROC's former territory, which would not violate the Constitution," Minister of the Interior Yu Cheng-hsien (余政憲) told reporters yesterday evening.
"It is my understanding that most ministries support the idea," Yu said.
According to MOI officials, they started to study the possibility of changing Mongolia's designation after receiving maps published by civic groups which exclude Mongolia during the processes of reviewing and examining maps published in Taiwan.
Chang Yuan-hsu (
The confusion surrounding the issue is based on the fact that the treaty whereby Taipei recognized Mongolia was revoked in 1953. The MOI's proposal would simply return Mongolia to the independent status is enjoyed before the Sino-Soviet Friendship Treaty of August 1945 was abrogated in 1953.
In that treaty, the ROC had agreed to recognize Mongolian independence if the Mongolian people voted in favor of it in a referendum. A referendum was duly held in October 1945, with the electorate voting overwhelmingly for independence. The ROC, therefore, recognized Mongolia in January 1946. When the treaty was revoked in 1953, Mongolia ostensibly reverted to sovereign ROC territory.
Chang further cited an administrative document released by the MOI in 1947, which states, "Despite the fact that we recognized Mongolia as a independent country on Jan. 5 1946, the borders [between the two] still need to be confirmed."
But Chang emphasized that the issue of Mongolian recognition is a political one and would must be decided by higher-level officials.
Under the rules, maps must be reviewed and examined by the Map Examination Committee, which is staffed by Executive Yuan ministries, before they can be published.
The MOI plans to repeal the regulations to allow the organizations to publish maps without such review and examination.
CAUTION: Based on intelligence from the nation’s security agencies, MOFA has cautioned Taiwanese travelers about heightened safety risks in China-friendly countries The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday urged Taiwanese to be aware of their safety when traveling abroad, especially in countries that are friendly to China. China in June last year issued 22 guidelines that allow its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death so-called “diehard” Taiwanese independence activists, even though Chinese courts have no jurisdiction in Taiwan. Late last month, a senior Chinese official gave closed-door instructions to state security units to implement the guidelines in countries friendly to China, a government memo and a senior Taiwan security official said, based on information gathered by Taiwan’s intelligence agency. The
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said yesterday that it is looking to hire 8,000 people this year, at a time when the tech giant is expanding production capacity to maintain its lead over competitors. To attract talent, TSMC would launch a large-scale recruitment campaign on campuses across Taiwan, where a newly recruited engineer with a master’s degree could expect to receive an average salary of NT$2.2 million (US$60,912), which is much higher than the 2023 national average of NT$709,000 for those in the same category, according to government statistics. TSMC, which accounted for more than 60 percent
Tung Tzu-hsien (童子賢), a Taiwanese businessman and deputy convener of the nation’s National Climate Change Committee, said yesterday that “electrical power is national power” and nuclear energy is “very important to Taiwan.” Tung made the remarks, suggesting that his views do not align with the country’s current official policy of phasing out nuclear energy, at a forum organized by the Taiwan People’s Party titled “Challenges and Prospects of Taiwan’s AI Industry and Energy Policy.” “Taiwan is currently pursuing industries with high added- value and is developing vigorously, and this all requires electricity,” said the chairman
RSS