The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday expressed its gratitude to the UK and the US governments for restating the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait in their UK-US Strategic Dialogue joint statement, which was released on Saturday London time.
British Foreign Secretary David Lammy and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met in London to open the UK-US Strategic Dialogue, which was held on Tuesday and Wednesday last week.
The strategic dialogue, which covered the key elements of the UK-US partnership, included unwavering support for Ukraine, the promotion of peace and security in the Middle East — including a ceasefire in Gaza — cooperation towards a free and open Indo-Pacific region, and alignment on secure, resilient and sustainable growth.
Photo: AP
In the joint statement released by both governments on Saturday, they “restated the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait as indispensable to the security and prosperity of the international community and called for the peaceful resolution of cross-Strait issues.”
In Taipei yesterday, the ministry issued a press release expressing its thanks to the UK, the US and other like-minded countries for their continued focus on peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and in the Indo-Pacific region.
“As a responsible member of the international community, Taiwan is to continue to work with like-minded democratic partners to safeguard the rules-based international order and promote regional peace, stability, and prosperity,” it said.
Regarding the Indo-Pacific region, the UK and the US’ joint statement said the two sides “pledged to explore new opportunities to coordinate approaches, work with others to support a free and open region, and oppose any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion.”
They also recognized AUKUS, their partnership with Australia, as a demonstration of their continued collective commitment to the region, the joint statement said.
Regarding China, the joint statement said that the UK and the US “noted with concern dangerous and destabilizing actions in the South China Sea by Chinese vessels towards Philippines vessels.”
They also confirmed their shared commitment to upholding international law and the rules-based international system, and emphasized the need to respect the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, it said.
Civil society groups yesterday protested outside the Legislative Yuan, decrying Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) efforts to pass three major bills that they said would seriously harm Taiwan’s democracy, and called to oust KMT caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅?萁). It was the second night of the three-day “Bluebird wintertime action” protests in Taipei, with organizers announcing that 8,000 people attended. Organized by Taiwan Citizen Front, the Economic Democracy Union (EDU) and a coalition of civil groups, about 6,000 people began a demonstration in front of KMT party headquarters in Taipei on Wednesday, organizers said. For the third day, the organizers asked people to assemble
Taipei is participating in Osaka’s Festival of Lights this year, with a 3m-tall bubble tea light installation symbolizing Taiwan’s bubble tea culture. The installation is designed as a bubble tea cup and features illustrations of Taipei’s iconic landmarks, such as Taipei 101, the Red House and North Gate, as well as soup dumplings and the matchmaking deity the Old Man Under the Moon (月下老人), affectionately known as Yue Lao (月老). Taipei and Osaka have collaborated closely on tourism and culture since Taipei first participated in the festival in 2018, the Taipei City Department of Information and Tourism said. In February, Osaka represented
POOR IMPLEMENTATION: Teachers welcomed the suspension, saying that the scheme disrupted school schedules, quality of learning and the milk market A policy to offer free milk to all school-age children nationwide is to be suspended next year due to multiple problems arising from implementation of the policy, the Executive Yuan announced yesterday. The policy was designed to increase the calcium intake of school-age children in Taiwan by drinking milk, as more than 80 percent drink less than 240ml per day. The recommended amount is 480ml. It was also implemented to help Taiwanese dairy farmers counter competition from fresh milk produced in New Zealand, which is to be imported to Taiwan tariff-free next year when the Agreement Between New Zealand and
Taiwanese professional baseball should update sports stadiums and boost engagement to enhance fans’ experience, Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) commissioner Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) told the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) in an interview on Friday. The league has urged Farglory Group and the Taipei City Government to improve the Taipei Dome’s outdated equipment, including relatively rudimentary television and sound systems, and poor technology, he said. The Tokyo Dome has markedly better television and sound systems, despite being 30 years old, because its managers continually upgraded its equipment, Tsai said. In contrast, the Taipei Dome lacked even a room for referees
RSS