President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) yesterday awarded a medal to Therese Shaheen, former chairwoman of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), for her contributions to Taiwan-US relations.
"She is not only the best friend Taiwan has, but also the guardian angel of all Taiwanese people," Chen said when welcoming Shaheen to the Presidential Office yesterday morning, adding that the Taiwan-US relationship is currently solid and close.
After decorating Shaheen with the "Order of Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon," Chen said that the friendship between Taiwan and the US had been markedly advanced by Shaheen's efforts at the AIT.
PHOTO: CNA
He said her uniquely warm and kind personality had filled US-Taiwan interactions with vitality.
"On the eve of our country's Dragon Boat Festival, I think that the Taiwan-US relationship can be compared with the `glutinous rice dumplings' which the country's people eat on this special day," Chen said.
"Just like the dumplings, which have so many delicious ingredients but are wrapped in leaves, people cannot see what is hidden inside," Chen said.
"Although the US and Taiwan do not currently have official diplomatic ties, the two countries' relationship is essentially very diverse and substantial in content. This includes so many friendships and achievements brought about by Mrs. Shaheen's efforts," the president said.
Chen said that he hopes Shaheen will be able to continue speaking out on Taiwan's behalf in the international community and seek further support from different camps in the US.
Shaheen said that Taiwan's experience provided inspiration to her in her career and that the bravery of all Taiwanese people also encouraged her.
"If the entire world is a shell, then Taiwan is the most brilliant pearl in it," Shaheen said, adding that the president is a good shepherd of Taiwanese society and that he would guide all sheep in the right direction.
The Presidential Office yesterday held a banquet in honor of Shaheen.
Although Shaheen described her four-day trip in Taiwan as a "private visit to meet some old friends," the government has given her a high-profile reception in an apparent bid to demonstrate Chen's appreciation for her efforts to facilitate communication between his administration and the US government during her 16 months in her post, as well to help the president to achieve a diplomatic breakthrough during his stopover in New York in October last year.
A number of top government officials attended closed-door meetings with Shaheen yesterday, including the president, Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮), Premier Yu Shyi-kun, National Security Council Chairman Chiou I-jen (邱義仁), Minister of National Defense Lee-Jye (李傑) and Mainland Affairs Council Chairman Joseph Wu (吳釗燮).
TENSIONS: The Chinese aircraft and vessels were headed toward the western Pacific to take part in a joint air and sea military exercise, the Ministry of National Defense said A relatively large number of Chinese military aircraft and vessels were detected in Taiwan’s vicinity yesterday morning, apparently en route to a Chinese military exercise in the western Pacific, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said. In a statement, the ministry said 36 Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, including J-16 fighters and nuclear-capable H-6 bombers, crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait or an extension of it, and were detected in the southern and southeastern parts of Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ) from 5:20am to 9:30am yesterday. They were headed toward the western Pacific to take part in a
Honor guards are to stop performing changing of the guard ceremonies around a statue of Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) to avoid “worshiping authoritarianism,” the Ministry of Culture said yesterday. The fate of the bronze statue has long been the subject of fierce and polarizing debate in Taiwan, which has transformed from an autocracy under Chiang into one of Asia’s most vibrant democracies. The changing of the guard each hour at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taipei is a major tourist attraction, but starting from 9am on Monday, the ceremony is to be moved outdoors to Democracy Boulevard, outside the eponymous blue-and-white memorial
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) supports peaceful unification with China, and President William Lai (賴清德) is “a bit naive” for being a “practical worker for Taiwanese independence,” former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) said in an interview published yesterday. Asked about whether the KMT is on the same page as the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) on the issue of Taiwanese independence or unification with China, Ma told the Malaysian Chinese-language newspaper Sin Chew Daily that they are not. While the KMT supports peaceful unification and is against unification by force, the DPP opposes unification as such and
CASES SLOWING: Although weekly COVID-19 cases are rising, the growth rate has been falling, from 90 percent to 30 percent, 14 percent and 6 percent, the CDC said COVID-19 hospitalizations last week rose 6 percent to 987, while deaths soared 55 percent to 99, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday, adding that the recent wave of infections would likely peak this week. People aged 65 or older accounted for 79 percent of the hospitalizations and 90 percent of the deaths, the majority of whom have or had underlying health conditions, CDC data showed. The youngest hospitalized case last week was a six-month-old, who was born preterm and was unvaccinated, CDC physician Lin Yung-ching (林詠青) said. The infant had a fever, coughing and a runny nose early this month, but