Taipei denounces Xi remarks to Trump

Taiwan yesterday denounced Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) comments to US President Donald Trump on the nation’s future, after Xi appeared to push Trump for a subtle change in stance that could erode US support for Taiwan. Xi told Trump in Washington on Thursday that he hoped the US would adhere to the “correct position” of opposing Taiwanese independence, according to a Chinese readout of the talks. That would be a tougher version of Washington’s long-standing formulation that it does not “support” independence. Photo: CNP / Bloomberg There was no immediate White House readout of the exchange. Xi’s remarks represent “the consistent Chinese approach of distorting facts and unilaterally conveying its position and claims,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. “Taiwan’s sovereignty belongs to all the people of Taiwan. The Chinese Communist Party [CCP] has no right to represent the Taiwanese people, and Taiwan’s future can only be determined by the Taiwanese people through democratic means,” it added. China is the “true disruptor” of regional peace and stability, the ministry said, pointing to its military activities around the nation, and in the East and South China seas. Taiwan would continue to work closely with the US and other like-minded partners to jointly safeguard peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, it added. The Mainland Affairs Council also rejected Xi’s remarks about the US and China “fighting side-by-side” during World War II, saying that the People’s Republic of China was founded in 1949 and did not exist during the war. The Republic of China (ROC) was the US’ true ally during WWII, the council said, adding that the CCP focused primarily on expanding its own power during the World War, dedicating only 10 percent of its efforts to fighting the Japanese. Furthermore, during the Korean War, the CCP championed its campaign to “resist US aggression and aid Korea,” becoming Washington’s primary adversary, it said. The CCP’s false narrative cannot erase the historical contributions of the ROC during WWII, it added. While there are no immediate signs that the Trump administration plans to acquiesce to Xi’s request, the repercussions of that nuanced word change would be far reaching. China may use the threat of Taiwanese independence or agitation for independence as a pretext for conflict, and remind the US that it has staked its opposition to those actions, Eurasia Group senior analyst on China Jeremy Chan said. “It would erode a lot of the ... strategic ambiguity of whether the US would come to Taiwan’s aid in that context,” said Chan, a former US diplomat stationed in China. US allies such as Japan have long worried that Trump might be willing to soften support for Taiwan in exchange for economic or other geopolitical wins with China. After meeting with Xi in Beijing in May, Trump said that he was holding a package of arms sales to Taiwan in abeyance, describing it as a “negotiating chip.” The US is seeking to secure Chinese purchases of Boeing planes and farm goods, and Washington views China as uniquely able to exert pressure on Iran to bring an end to the war that has dragged Trump’s approval rating to a record low. Trump does not wish to see Taipei become an obstacle to achieving a broader and more comprehensive agreement with Beijing, Tamkang University diplomacy and international relations assistant professor James Chen (陳奕帆) said. “Trump has not yet shown any intention to trade Taiwan for a major strategic gain,” he added. Additional reporting by Chung Li-hua SOFT TENNIS: Yu Kai-wen and Huang Shih-yuan narrowly defeated their Japanese rivals to capture Taiwan’s first gold at the Asian Games in Nagoya Yu Kai-wen (余凱文) and Huang Shih-yuan (黃詩媛) won Taiwan’s first gold of this year’s Asian Games, defeating a Japanese duo in a nail-biter in the soft tennis mixed doubles final in Nagoya, Japan, while Johnny Sun (孫家閎) won silver in wushu and Shih Cheng-chung (石政中) won bronze in men’s kumite. Yu and Huang narrowly defeated Japan’s Toshiki Uematsu and Rena Temma 5-4 (2-4, 5-3, 4-2, 1-4, 1-4, 4-0, 1-4, 4-1, 7-5) to give Taiwan its first gold in soft tennis mixed doubles at an Asian Games since 2018. Sun secured Taiwan’s first wushu medal at this year’s game, with a combined score CALL FOR CHANGE: They urged the UN to facilitate Taiwan’s involvement in the body, recognize its peace efforts and to work with members in preventing military conflict Representatives to the UN from five of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies sent a joint letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday, calling for the country’s inclusion in the body. Allies in the letter sent ahead of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly General Debate made three demands in support of Taiwan: inclusion, recognition and camaraderie. They implored the UN to seek an appropriate way to facilitate Taiwan’s meaningful involvement in the world governing body, saying that UN Resolution 2758, which accepted the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as a member of the UN, does not exclude Taiwan. Beijing claims that the AT-RISK GROUPS: Of the accumulated 1,586 severe cases and 304 related deaths in this flu season, 65.8% were older people and 83.2% had chronic diseases, an official said The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday said that 165 severe flu cases and 30 flu-related deaths were reported last week, the highest weekly numbers in this flu season, and that cases might continue to increase, urging people to take precautions. Medical visits for flu-like illnesses increased by 1.4 percent to 141,374 last week, with 11.8 percent being emergency visits, showing that the seasonal flu is still in its epidemic period, CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) said. From Tuesday last week to Monday, 165 severe flu cases and 30 flu-related deaths were confirmed, the highest weekly numbers UNITY: Lai thanked the nations who spoke up for Taiwan, saying that democracies must stand together to face global authoritarian expansion Taiwan yesterday thanked eight European and Indo-Pacific countries for opposing unilateral changes to the “status quo” in the Taiwan Strait in a joint statement earlier this week, as well as three of Taiwan’s allies for speaking up for the nation’s participation in the UN at the body’s General Assembly in New York. Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) welcomed the support and expressed his appreciation for the countries’ stance, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. Foreign ministers and senior representatives of Australia, France, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Poland, South Korea and the UK issued a statement on Tuesday