The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday reiterated its position that the Republic of China (ROC) “has indisputable sovereignty” over Jhongye Island (中業島) in the South China Sea, in response to the Philippines’ plan to construct a pier in the disputed region.
In a statement issued at 12:20am yesterday, Taipei repeated its three-point position on the South China Sea after the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) defended the construction of the wharf and insisted that the area is its territory on Friday.
According to the Manila Times, the Philippines said the building of a ferry pier on the island, known in the Philippines as Pagasa, is a “clear exercise” of Philippine sovereignty.
DFA spokesman Raul Hernandez was quoted as saying that “Pagasa Island is ours. It is part of the municipality of Kalayaan.”
It is the government’s obligation to bring progress and development to the municipality of Kalayaan for Filipinos living in the islands of the municipality, Hernandez was quoted as saying, adding that the pier would facilitate the delivery of basic necessities and government services for the Filipinos in Pagasa.
Manila issued the statement in response to a protest lodged by the Chinese foreign ministry against its construction of the wharf.
In Taipei, MOFA said Jhongye Island — which is part of the Spratly Islands (南沙群島) — along with Paracel Islands (西沙群島), Macclesfield Bank (中沙群島), Pratas Islands (東沙群島) and their surrounding waters are all “an inherent part of the ROC’s territory from the perspective of history, geography or international law.”
The ROC government reasserts that it enjoys all rights over the islands and their surrounding waters and that it does not accept any claims to sovereignty over, or occupation of, these areas by other countries, MOFA said.
Taipei’s policy on the South China Sea calls for countries in the region to respect the principles and spirit of the UN Charter and the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, and to refrain from adopting unilateral measures that could threaten peace and stability in the region.
“Our country remains willing to participate in dialogue that seeks to find resolutions to disputes and to promote regional peace, stability and development,” MOFA said.
Taipei says that it upholds the basic principles of “safeguarding sovereignty, shelving disputes, peace and reciprocity, and joint exploration” and remains willing to cooperate with other countries to explore for resources in the South China Sea.
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) today said that if South Korea does not reply appropriately to its request to correct Taiwan’s name on its e-Arrival card system before March 31, it would take corresponding measures to alter how South Korea is labeled on the online Taiwan Arrival Card system. South Korea’s e-Arrival card system lists Taiwan as “China (Taiwan)” in the “point of departure” and “next destination” fields. The ministry said that it changed the nationality for South Koreans on Taiwan’s Alien Resident Certificates from “Korea” to “South Korea” on March 1, in a gesture of goodwill and based on the
Taiwanese officials were shown the first of 66 F-16V fighter jets purchased by Taiwan from the United States, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday, adding the aircraft has completed an initial flight test and is expected to be delivered later this year. A delegation led by Deputy Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) visited Lockheed Martin’s F-16 C/D Block 70 (also known as F-16V) assembly line in South Carolina on March 16 to view the aircraft. The jet will undergo a final acceptance flight in the US before being delivered to Taiwan, the
The New Taipei Metro's Sanyin Line and the eastern extension of the Taipei Metro's Tamsui-Xinyi Line (Red Line) are scheduled to begin operations in June, the National Development Council said today. The Red Line, which terminates at Xiangshan Station, would be connected by the 1.4km extension to a new eastern terminal, Guangci/Fengtian Temple Station, while the Sanyin Line would link New Taipei City's Tucheng and Yingge stations via Sanxia District (三峽). The council gave the updates at a council meeting reviewing progress on public construction projects for this year. Taiwan's annual public infrastructure budget would remain at NT$800 billion (US$25.08 billion), with NT$97.3
RSS