Visiting US Representative Kevin Hern during a meeting with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday said he hopes to see Taiwan as an independent country one day.
Hern is leading a delegation of US lawmakers from the US Republican Study Committee (RSC), of which he is the chairman.
The group is to stay until tomorrow.
Photo: Reuters
“Support for Taiwan as an independent and sovereign nation has been one of the founding principles of the RSC and has remained a top priority for 50 years,” he said.
As the US celebrated its Independence Day yesterday, Hern said: “What an honor it would be to one day soon see Taiwan experience the same independence that our original 13 colonies enjoyed in the early days.”
He thanked Taiwanese for “wanting the liberties and freedoms that can only be truly experienced as an independent nation.”
He acknowledged the leadership of Representative to the US Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴), saying the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the US “is truly an amazing example of the hard work and commitment that is synonymous with the culture of Taiwan.”
The relationship between Taiwan and the US enjoys support across the political spectrum, and “all Americans of all walks of life understand the importance of our friendship,” Hern said.
Tsai thanked Hern for arranging the visit and promoting exchanges between Taiwan and the US.
Taiwan plays a vital role in the global supply chain and hopes to work with the US and other democratic partners to make it safer and more resilient, she said.
Tsai expressed the hope that Taiwan and the US would soon sign an agreement on the avoidance of double taxation, following the signing of the first agreement under the US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st-Century Trade last month.
Earlier yesterday, the delegation met with Vice President William Lai (賴清德), who thanked delegation members for showing support for Taiwan through the visit.
Lai said he hoped that the committee can support Taiwan’s bid to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, which would be beneficial to the economic development of Taiwan and the whole region.
Taiwan has been bolstering its national defense capabilities and hopes that the US would continue to provide the nation with the weapons necessary for the nation to defend itself, he said, adding that he also hopes the weapons would be delivered on time.
Separately, eight Canadian lawmakers arrived in Taiwan yesterday for a six-day visit, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
The members of the delegation, which is led by Deputy Leader of the Canadian Conservative Party Melissa Lantsman, belong to major political parties and serve in important parliamentary committees, the ministry said.
As China continues to take unilateral actions to escalate regional tensions, the visit “fully demonstrates the Canadian parliament’s firm support for Taiwan,” it said.
Through the trip, the delegation would gain a better understanding of the situation in Taiwan and in the region, which can help improve the partnership between Taiwan and the Canadian parliament, it added.
‘TAIWAN-FRIENDLY’: The last time the Web site fact sheet removed the lines on the US not supporting Taiwanese independence was during the Biden administration in 2022 The US Department of State has removed a statement on its Web site that it does not support Taiwanese independence, among changes that the Taiwanese government praised yesterday as supporting Taiwan. The Taiwan-US relations fact sheet, produced by the department’s Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, previously stated that the US opposes “any unilateral changes to the status quo from either side; we do not support Taiwan independence; and we expect cross-strait differences to be resolved by peaceful means.” In the updated version published on Thursday, the line stating that the US does not support Taiwanese independence had been removed. The updated
‘CORRECT IDENTIFICATION’: Beginning in May, Taiwanese married to Japanese can register their home country as Taiwan in their spouse’s family record, ‘Nikkei Asia’ said The government yesterday thanked Japan for revising rules that would allow Taiwanese nationals married to Japanese citizens to list their home country as “Taiwan” in the official family record database. At present, Taiwanese have to select “China.” Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said the new rule, set to be implemented in May, would now “correctly” identify Taiwanese in Japan and help protect their rights, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. The statement was released after Nikkei Asia reported the new policy earlier yesterday. The name and nationality of a non-Japanese person marrying a Japanese national is added to the
AT RISK: The council reiterated that people should seriously consider the necessity of visiting China, after Beijing passed 22 guidelines to punish ‘die-hard’ separatists The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has since Jan. 1 last year received 65 petitions regarding Taiwanese who were interrogated or detained in China, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. Fifty-two either went missing or had their personal freedoms restricted, with some put in criminal detention, while 13 were interrogated and temporarily detained, he said in a radio interview. On June 21 last year, China announced 22 guidelines to punish “die-hard Taiwanese independence separatists,” allowing Chinese courts to try people in absentia. The guidelines are uncivilized and inhumane, allowing Beijing to seize assets and issue the death penalty, with no regard for potential
‘UNITED FRONT’ FRONTS: Barring contact with Huaqiao and Jinan universities is needed to stop China targeting Taiwanese students, the education minister said Taiwan has blacklisted two Chinese universities from conducting academic exchange programs in the nation after reports that the institutes are arms of Beijing’s United Front Work Department, Minister of Education Cheng Ying-yao (鄭英耀) said in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper) published yesterday. China’s Huaqiao University in Xiamen and Quanzhou, as well as Jinan University in Guangzhou, which have 600 and 1,500 Taiwanese on their rolls respectively, are under direct control of the Chinese government’s political warfare branch, Cheng said, citing reports by national security officials. A comprehensive ban on Taiwanese institutions collaborating or
RSS