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Give Taiwan
more space: Negroponte
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RESTRAINT: Joseph Wu said the
US deputy secretary of state's remarks reflected the US' observation of China's
relentless efforts to squeeze Taiwan's international space
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By Jenny W. Hsu and
Nadia Tsao
STAFF REPORTERS IN TAIPEI AND WASHINGTON
Friday, Feb 08, 2008, Page 1
US Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte urged Beijing to be "a little bit
more generous toward Taiwan" when Taipei seeks participation in international
organizations that do not require statehood.
"Our policy is to counsel restraint on both sides of the Strait, to reiterate
our position that this is a question that should be settled by peaceful means,
and that no one should do anything that would unilaterally alter the status
quo," he said in an interview with the US Council of Foreign Relations on
Monday.
"And for its part, one of the things that we urge the People's Republic of China
[PRC], is that they shouldn't try to deprive Taiwan of all of its political
space," he said.
"For example, there are institutions, global institutions, that don't require
being a state to have membership. We think Beijing can afford to be a little bit
more generous toward Taiwan in regard to some of those organizations," he said.
"We also are concerned, and expressed our preoccupation, about this military
buildup on the PRC's side of the Strait. That's a subject of continual concern
as well," he said.
Commenting on Negroponte's remarks while speaking to a group of reporters at the
Foreign Press Association in New York, Taiwan's de facto ambassador to
Washington Joseph Wu (§d°xÀè) said on Wednesday that Taiwan and the US shared the
same view that Beijing's relentless effort to squeeze Taiwan's international
space could trigger conflict across the Taiwan Strait.
Negroponte's remarks were undoubtedly the result of a long-term observation of
China's "all-out" oppression of Taiwan, the Central News Agency quoted Wu as
saying.
Wu said that many pundits in academic and political circles in the US believed
Taiwan's participation in international organizations was a justified issue and
that the rights of Taiwanese to be part of international bodies should be
respected.
Meanwhile, at a forum on Wednesday on Taiwan's defense capability, a US academic
said he believed Taiwan's future would be grim unless the nation could reach a
consensus on its relations with China.
John Tkacik, a research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, said that based on
the current pace of military expansion on both sides of the Strait, Taiwan was
virtually defenseless.
He said that while a majority of Taiwanese politicians advocate opening up trade
relations with Beijing, many overlook the fact that allowing Taiwan's high-tech
companies to invest in China is basically handing Taiwan's strength to Bei-jing
on a silver platter.
Tkacik also questioned the logic of the Bush administration's Taiwan policy.
On one hand, the US government wants Taiwan to purchase weapons to defend
itself, but on the other, it opposes Taiwan buying offensive weapons that have
the capability of destroying the Chinese military.
Another US academic at the forum, Ted Cato of the Cato Institute, said for the
past eight years, the pan-blue camp has been depending on the US for military
support.
He said he hoped Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential hopeful Ma Ying-jeou
(°¨^¤E) would stick to his word when he said he would increase Taiwan's military
budget if elected.
Carpenter said there were several benchmarks that could be used to assess
China's "friendliness" toward Taiwan if Ma wins office: would Beijing stop
deploying missiles pointed at Taiwan, stop suffocating Taiwan's diplomatic space
and allow for Taiwan's greater participation in international bodies such as the
WHO.
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Japan
cautious on PRC claims of political sabotage
AFP, TOKYO
Friday, Feb 08, 2008, Page 1
Japan yesterday warned against rushing to the conclusion that Chinese dumplings
behind a recent health scare were intentionally poisoned, following allegations
of politically motivated sabotage.
A senior Chinese official on Wednesday said the frozen dumplings, which sickened
at least 10 victims in Japan, may have been poisoned by people opposed to
friendly ties between the two countries.
But Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura said the Chinese side had
"yet to reach a firm conclusion."
"It would be better not to specify the cause when we have not completed a full
investigation," he told a media conference.
Japan and China have been working since 2006 to repair political relations which
had hit rock bottom amid a row over Tokyo's past imperialism and a territorial
dispute. Chinese President Hu Jintao (JÀAÀÜ) is scheduled to pay a visit to Tokyo
early this year.
The suggestion of a political motive behind the health scare was made by Vice
Minister of the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and
Quarantine Wei Chuanzhong (ÃQ¶Ç©¾) to a Japanese government mission on Wednesday.
"We cannot deny the possibility that a small group of discontented elements who
do not wish for the development of China-Japan friendship may have taken extreme
measures," he said, in footage aired on Japanese television.
He did not say whether the culprits were Chinese or Japanese.
Despite the Japanese government's cautious stance, outspoken Japanese Health
Minister Yoichi Masuzoe on Tuesday had also suggested the poisoning may have
been deliberate.
As speculation remained rife on the cause of the poisoning, Japanese media have
been full of stories on food safety, ranging from Chinese foodstuffs hidden in
popular menus to how dumplings are made at Japanese factories.
Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda yesterday admitted the health ministry had
been late in having an overall picture of what happened as local offices had
received complaints about poisoning separately.
"With information spread apart, the government has been unable to tackle the
issue in unison," he told a parliamentary committee, vowing to make it easier
for consumers to complain.
China, Japan's largest trading partner and its second-biggest supplier of
imported food, has been hit by a string of scandals over its products.
Thousands of Japanese have said they felt ill after eating frozen meat dumplings
produced in China, with the health ministry confirming that 10 of them suffered
pesticide poisoning.
The scare on Wednesday led instant-noodle pioneer Nissin Food Products to scrap
a planned merger of its frozen food business with Japan Tobacco Inc, a unit of
which imported the dumplings.
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