For Taiwan's de facto ambassador to the US, David Lee (
President Chen Shui-bian's (
No sooner was that incident settled when Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (
The Feb. 27 Chen proposal put enormous strain on Lee to act as an intermediary to defuse what could have been an explosive situation -- one that could seriously affect US-Taiwan relations at a time that the beleaguered administration of US President George W. Bush wanted no crises to come in the way of its Iraq-centered foreign policy.
The Ma visit presented a completely different challenge.
Normally, when any high-level Taiwanese official visits Washington, Lee is automatically invited in.
Because of the arcane rules governing US-Taiwan interactions, meetings do not happen in normal places such as the State Department, White House or the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office, which Lee heads.
In the case of Ma, his meeting with US officials happened at a private downtown club, a venue used in the past for such encounters.
As such, the meeting was considered a "private" one under the murky rules covering US-Taiwan bilateral exchanges. While the US side sorely wanted Lee to attend, Ma's people strongly objected. Since it was a "private" meeting, the US officials were technically guests and Ma's demands had to be met.
Lee could not attend.
What followed was a chorus of Taipei politicians demanding Lee's removal for not attending the meeting.
In fact, there was nothing he could do. Washington is an extremely difficult place to do business, especially for a representative of a territory subject to the convoluted US-Taiwan diplomatic environment. He is bound by everybody else's wishes. Lee is a brilliant diplomat, and it would be hard to find somebody to do his job better than he does it.
As Lee sat among six visiting Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators at a press conference on Thursday during their annual visit to Washington, the strain was clear on his face. His normal cheerful mien was replace by a gaunt figure with sunken jowls.
That was an improvement on the day before, according to people who had seen him then, when calls for his dismissal arose, and Lee spoke to Minister of Foreign Affairs James Huang (黃志芳).
At the time, Lee also spoke to some Taiwanese reporters, saying he would be willing to step down if asked. There were two things essential for an envoy, he explained: The support of his government and the respect of the host government. If either one was lost, he would have to resign, he said.
Approached by the Taipei Times on Thursday, Lee declined to say anything more.
But members of the DPP delegation voiced their support for Lee and related that there was support for him among US officials.
"US officials said they complimented him very much," delegation leader Charles Chiang (
There was "no substance" to the calls for Lee's dismissal, Chiang said. "US officials here say he has done the job well."
Despite the US' accession to Ma's demand to bar Lee, the US side was "very sorry to Ambassador Lee," delegation member Legislator William Lai (
US officials told the legislators that Ma had not learned any secrets.
"They would not tell Ma anything we don't know," Lai said.
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) yesterday appealed to the authorities to release former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) from pretrial detention amid conflicting reports about his health. The TPP at a news conference on Thursday said that Ko should be released to a hospital for treatment, adding that he has blood in his urine and had spells of pain and nausea followed by vomiting over the past three months. Hsieh Yen-yau (謝炎堯), a retired professor of internal medicine and Ko’s former teacher, said that Ko’s symptoms aligned with gallstones, kidney inflammation and potentially dangerous heart conditions. Ko, charged with
RSS