Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Bill Sun (
At a press conference held at the legislature, Sun said Thailand's Trade and Economic Office in Taipei twice turned down his application for a visa in July, forcing him to cancel a planned trip to attend a conference in Bangkok last month.
According to the lawmaker, he was not the only Taiwanese official who had been denied a visa. Thailand recently rejected visa the applications of Examination Yuan President Yao Chia-wen (
Chen, Sun said, was planning to join a conference on labor in Thailand this month.
"Why is Thailand afraid of issuing visas for Taiwanese officials? Is it afraid that by doing so it will anger China? Is Thailand China's lackey?" Sun said.
The lawmaker asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to arrange a meeting between him and Thailand's representative to Taiwan, Nualpan Mahakun, to discuss the visa issue last Friday. The meeting, however, did not take place.
"Ministry officials told me they couldn't arrange the meeting. The ministry should protest firmly to Thai officials. The Thailand Trade and Economic Office here should apologize to Taiwan," Sun said.
If no apology is given, Sun said he will stage a demonstration in front of the Thailand Trade and Economic Office protesting what he called the country's discrimination against Taiwan.
"Many Taiwanese tourists travel to Thailand every year. Our government imports a lot of workers from Thailand. Both help Thailand's economy a great deal. Thailand, however, still treats Taiwan unfairly," he said.
Sun also urged the public not to travel to Thailand and said he will request the government reduce the number of Thai workers if Thailand does not apologize.
Ministry spokesman Michel Lu (
"We hope Taiwan and Thailand can work through this issue. We hope the two countries can improve ties," Lu said.
Sun said he revealed the incident to the media because his request that the ministry speak to Thai officials on his behalf apparently went nowhere.
Thailand and Taiwan have maintained at best shaky relations. Minister of Foreign Affairs Mark Chen (陳唐山) once labelled Thailand as an "unfriendly nation."
The Thailand Trade and Economic Office officials were not available for comment yesterday.
Taipei and New Taipei City government officials are aiming to have the first phase of the Wanhua-Jungho-Shulin Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line completed and opened by 2027, following the arrival of the first train set yesterday. The 22km-long Light Green Line would connect four densely populated districts in Taipei and New Taipei City: Wanhua (萬華), Jhonghe (中和), Tucheng (土城) and Shulin (樹林). The first phase of the project would connect Wanhua and Jhonghe districts, with Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Chukuang (莒光) being the terminal stations. The two municipalities jointly hosted a ceremony for the first train to be used
MILITARY AID: Taiwan has received a first batch of US long-range tactical missiles ahead of schedule, with a second shipment expected to be delivered by 2026 The US’ early delivery of long-range tactical ballistic missiles to Taiwan last month carries political and strategic significance, a military source said yesterday. According to the Ministry of National Defense’s budget report, the batch of military hardware from the US, including 11 sets of M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and 64 MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems, had been scheduled to be delivered to Taiwan between the end of this year and the beginning of next year. However, the first batch arrived last month, earlier than scheduled, with the second batch —18 sets of HIMARS, 20 MGM-140 missiles and 864 M30
Representative to the US Alexander Yui delivered a letter from the government to US president-elect Donald Trump during a meeting with a former Trump administration official, CNN reported yesterday. Yui on Thursday met with former US national security adviser Robert O’Brien over a private lunch in Salt Lake City, Utah, with US Representative Chris Stewart, the Web site of the US cable news channel reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “During that lunch the letter was passed along, and then shared with Trump, two of the sources said,” CNN said. O’Brien declined to comment on the lunch, as did the Taipei
A woman who allegedly attacked a high-school student with a utility knife, injuring his face, on a Taipei metro train late on Friday has been transferred to prosecutors, police said yesterday. The incident occurred near MRT Xinpu Station at about 10:17pm on a Bannan Line train headed toward Dingpu, New Taipei City police said. Before police arrived at the station to arrest the suspect, a woman surnamed Wang (王) who is in her early 40s, she had already been subdued by four male passengers, one of whom was an off-duty Taipei police officer, police said. The student, 17, who sustained a cut about
RSS