The US does not take sides and does not “take actions that would imply that we are taking sides” in Taiwan’s elections, US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Russel said on Thursday.
“We respect the people of Taiwan and we respect their ability to select their own leaders,” he said.
Russel was answering questions following a Washington news briefing on US Secretary of State John Kerry’s recent visit to Beijing and Seoul.
He had been asked if the US would try to persuade Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) to accept or acknowledge the existence of the so-called “1992 consensus” when she visits Washington next month.
The “1992 consensus,” a term former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) admitted making up in 2000, refers to a tacit understanding between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Chinese government that both sides acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having their own interpretation of what “China” means.
Russel said that he would be happy to meet with Tsai and talk about “a range of issues.”
He said he would be equally happy to meet with candidates from the KMT should they choose to visit.
“There is nothing political implied in the fact that Tsai might visit the US and be received by those of us who handle foreign policy,” Russel said.
“The reason we would want to talk to her is because the US has an important long-standing unofficial relationship with Taiwan, and because the US has a huge and long-standing interest in peaceful and stable cross-strait relations,” he said.
Russel said the US valued the steps Taiwan and China have taken to reduce tensions and to improve cross-strait relations on the basis of dignity and respect.
“The substance of where cross-strait relations go and the scope of the interactions between Taiwan and the mainland, those policy issues, are for the people of Taiwan to decide what position they want to take,” he said.
Russel said it was up to the candidates to explain their policies to voters — “and we want to hear from the candidates what their policy is, what their strategy is.”
He insisted that this was not taking sides, but was a “legitimate discussion” about areas where the US had interests and views.
“Given the friendly unofficial relations, the US has an appropriate expectation that a major political candidate would want to talk through and share with us his or her thinking, his or her strategy for managing that important relationship — how they manage it, what they view as the desirable path forward is what we want to hear.”
Russel said that, as the US discusses cross-strait stability with Taiwan’s political parties, it would also be talking to China and “encouraging the leadership in Beijing to exercise patience and to show flexibility and restraint in dealing with the leadership in Taiwan.”
He said that would be in the interests of Taiwan, the region and of the US.
“So, we look forward to Chairwoman Tsai’s visit and look forward to hearing what it is that she has to say,” Russel said.
WANG RELEASED: A police investigation showed that an organized crime group allegedly taught their clients how to pretend to be sick during medical exams Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) and 11 others were released on bail yesterday, after being questioned for allegedly dodging compulsory military service or forging documents to help others avoid serving. Wang, 33, was catapulted into stardom for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代). Lately, he has been focusing on developing his entertainment career in China. The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office last month began investigating an organized crime group that is allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified documents. Police in New Taipei City Yonghe Precinct at the end of last month arrested the main suspect,
Eleven people, including actor Darren Wang (王大陸), were taken into custody today for questioning regarding the evasion of compulsory military service and document forgery, the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said. Eight of the people, including Wang, are suspected of evading military service, while three are suspected of forging medical documents to assist them, the report said. They are all being questioned by police and would later be transferred to the prosecutors’ office for further investigation. Three men surnamed Lee (李), Chang (張) and Lin (林) are suspected of improperly assisting conscripts in changing their military classification from “stand-by
LITTORAL REGIMENTS: The US Marine Corps is transitioning to an ‘island hopping’ strategy to counterattack Beijing’s area denial strategy The US Marine Corps (USMC) has introduced new anti-drone systems to bolster air defense in the Pacific island chain amid growing Chinese military influence in the region, The Telegraph reported on Sunday. The new Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS) Mk 1 is being developed to counter “the growing menace of unmanned aerial systems,” it cited the Marine Corps as saying. China has constructed a powerful defense mechanism in the Pacific Ocean west of the first island chain by deploying weapons such as rockets, submarines and anti-ship missiles — which is part of its anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) strategy against adversaries — the
Former Taiwan People’s Party chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) may apply to visit home following the death of his father this morning, the Taipei Detention Center said. Ko’s father, Ko Cheng-fa (柯承發), passed away at 8:40am today at the Hsinchu branch of National Taiwan University Hospital. He was 94 years old. The center said Ko Wen-je was welcome to apply, but declined to say whether it had already received an application. The center also provides psychological counseling to people in detention as needed, it added, also declining to comment on Ko Wen-je’s mental state. Ko Wen-je is being held in detention as he awaits trial
RSS