Plans to pass a legislative motion clarifying Taiwan’s stance on UN Resolution 2758 might be derailed as the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) demurs on the issue, saying it could adversely affect cross-strait relations.
The Democratic Progressive Party, which is planning to draft a motion to address UN Resolution 2758, is hoping to gain the support of other parties, but the KMT caucus yesterday said that such a motion needs further evaluation.
China has aligned UN Resolution 2758 with its own definition of the “one China principle,” reducing Taiwan’s opportunity for participation on the world stage.
Photo: AP
However, the resolution has recently captured the attention of the international community, with the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, the Australian Senate and the Dutch House of Representatives successively passing motions in support of Taiwan and seeking to clarify that the resolution does not involve Taiwan nor is it the same as China’s interpretation.
UN Resolution 2758, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971, recognizes the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the “only lawful representative” of China, but it does not state that it has sovereignty over Taiwan, as Beijing has insisted.
The KMT caucus yesterday said that the DPP’s proposed motion “needs to be evaluated pragmatically.”
Rather than hastily passing such a motion, it is necessary to determine how it could potentially affect the development of cross-strait relations, including if it could raise tensions between the two sides, KMT caucus secretary-general Lin Szu-ming (林思銘) said.
Every member of the legislature loves their country and hopes to see Taiwan engage with the international community, but it is necessary to first pragmatically manage cross-strait relations, he said.
Cross-strait relations take precedence over other diplomatic ties, and only by handling them well would Taiwan have more space to participate on the world stage, he added.
Lin urged the DPP to carefully consider whether such a motion would contribute toward peaceful relations with China, rather than only helping Taiwan.
He also expressed gratitude on behalf of his party for the support from other countries.
The KMT’s response drew sharp criticism from the DPP.
“With a party like that, who needs enemies? The KMT should apologize to Taiwanese society,” DPP caucus deputy secretary-general Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) said.
DPP caucus secretary-general Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) accused the KMT caucus of backtracking on its earlier support for the proposed motion, citing Lin’s comments when the Australian Senate passed its motion last month.
“The KMT is under pressure from whom?” she asked, in an apparent reference to China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) last week urging countries to stop supporting Taiwan and reaffirming its own interpretation linking UN Resolution 2758 and its “one China principle.”
Wu asked whether the KMT caucus had been influenced by China’s comments, and questioned whether the party is fit to partake in governing the country.
Lin’s lack of support is disappointing, DPP Legislator Tsai Yi-yu (蔡易餘) said.
While the world supports Taiwan in its hopes of clarifying UN Resolution 2758, the KMT reversed its position as soon as the TAO commented on the issue, he said, adding that the KMT preferred to follow the TAO’s lead.
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