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Pacific allies call for international recognition of Taiwan

Agence France-Presse

MAJURO - Taiwan's Pacific allies called Friday for the island to be admitted to the United Nations and pledged their allegiance at the opening of a summit here.

The summit is the second annual meeting of Taiwan's President Chen Shui-bian and the leaders of six Pacific island nations, who make up a quarter of Taipei's diplomatic allies worldwide.

The two-day meeting in the Marshall Islands capital Majuro at a new, Taiwan-funded conference centre follows last year's inaugural summit in Palau and is part of moves by Taipei to prevent any defections of diplomatic support to Beijing.

The leaders of the Marshall Islands, Palau, Kiribati, Tuvalu, Nauru and the Solomon Islands said the international community was unjust to prevent Taiwan having an international voice.

"No country deserves international recognition more than Taiwan," said Palau President Tommy Remengesau.

He called the UN's decision last month to reject Taiwan's application for membership "justice delayed," but said island would ultimately prevail.

Last month the UN General Assembly rejected Taiwan's latest attempt to return to the body after its expulsion in 1971 in favour of the communist government in Beijing.

President Ludwig Scotty of Nauru, the most recent Pacific nation to switch from recognizing China to Taiwan in 2005, said "Taiwan should be accepted in the international community as a democratic, peace-loving nation."

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manase Sogavare vowed his country would continue to campaign for Taiwan's membership of the UN and World Health Organization.

Earlier Chen said while opening the conference centre that his government would continue to provide aid to its allies.

He said Taiwan wanted to help the Pacific islands and contribute to the international community.

The main meeting of the summit is being held Friday afternoon, with individual meetings between Chen and five of the island heads of state on Saturday. No new major aid initiatives were expected to be announced.

Taiwan began holding summits with its Pacific allies last year, soon after China held its first ever summit with its Pacific allies in Fiji.

Both Taiwan and China have been accused of "checkbook diplomacy" in the Pacific, and analysts have said their rivalry has contributed to instability in the region.

Taiwan, which split from China following the victory of the communists in the civil war in 1949, makes annual attempts to be admitted to the UN.

China regards Taiwan as a rebel province which will eventually be reunited with the mainland -- by force if necessary.

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tangshiyn

hehe
taiwan has to pay for the "pacific allies"'s admitment.

Shamus

Could you explain this please,I do not understand what you mean.

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Tronic

I think he is referring to PRC invading Taiwan; I guess he doesn't realize that PRC would also pay a hefty price for any invasion.

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-Touch The Sky With Glory

Officer of Engineers

No, he's referring to the monetary rewards Taiwan gives out for official recognition of the island.

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Chimo

Zeng

Both PRC and ROC waste money on those small poor countries. PRC wasted money for limiting ROC's international space. ROC waste money for let those countries to submit tickets for UN. Some of those countries switch back and forth for the bigger money donor.

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Tronic

They what? Hehe, I had no knowledge of that whatsoever! Thanks for the info colonel, though I do find it quite amusing...

gunnut

I think Taiwan currently has 27 "official" allies. They are small and poor nations from Africa, South America, and the Pacific islands. Taiwan pays monetary aid and construction projects for their voices in UN.

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Zeng

Taiwan currently has 24 "official" allies. One is super rich Vatican in Europe.

Foreign relations of the Republic of China - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

tangshiyn

yes i agree ,but how can they (PRC ANG ROC) solve the problem?

Zeng

First, I should acknowledge that I don't have a good solution for such a complicated problem. No one has it yet. We and the next several generations need to work hard and think smart to explore all kinds of possibilities.

But most people with sober mind agree that the hope of solving the problem in favor of Chinese people, i.e. reunification, is China becoming a lot stronger. There is no better way to get closer to solve this problem than we study harder, work harder and think smarter in improving China.

It will take many decades to achieve the goal. Because it is a very hard goal to achieve, it is very precious and valuable. You can’t ask for any goal better than that.

Taiwan is the god send gift to China to challenge our patient, to focus our minds, to unify our hearts for several generations to come continuously working on it.

For the ultimate interests of China, we don’t even want to reunite Taiwan prematurely. Think about it in this way. Which island made more contribution to China’s fast development today, is it Hainan or Taiwan? The answer is clear. Hainan cost China for development sometime. Taiwan contributes to China’s development in the past, now and in the future. The best thing is that even those who hate China the most, the DPP and their supports can’t do much about it. Nearly a million people from Taiwan are doing business in mainland. Hundred of billions money has been invested into mainland from Taiwan to boost our ecnomy.

We are lucky that we have Taiwan there wasn’t ruined by Mao and his communist team. By the time when we become better and stronger, Taiwan will not and can not go anywhere.

wkllaw

Solving the problem is pretty difficult, I think China needs to use military and economic force to stay the status quo for as long as possible untill they get stronger and are in the state to push for a cultural and national identity.

A good first step will be to increase the ability of common people to see each other not as the arch-enemy across the strait, but as people that are the same as you or me. The people will need to be able to talk to each other and learn they are human beings and not the evil-villains that are trying to destroy their nation.

I personally see the solution as either a war or gradual reforms and opening up and a gradual shift to a attitude that sees each other as countrymen or at the very least human beings which will lead to reunification. I'm hoping to avoid war, but war is easy to break out, the gradual reconciliation then reunification will be difficult, but it is a great prize.

Anyway, about Hainan, I see it as the most beautiful place ever. Taiwan is still great, but Hainan is still better in my opinion based on how the landscape looks. Taiwan is better economicly and has more chinese culture, but Hainan beats Taiwan in the looks.

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Zeng

Sorry, I didn't intend to defame Hainan. I visited Hainan once. It is really beautiful. Never been to Taiwan, but the pictures look beautiful too.

wkllaw

I didn't think you were trying to defame Hainan because Hainan is inferior to Taiwan in helping the chinese nation as a whole like you said, I thought I should try to cast Hainan as a beautiful island despite the economic inferiority to Taiwan just in case some people might see Hainan as a pointless drag to China.

tangshiyn

hehe I think I had master your points, but I want to say the solution of the Taiwan problem is the base of the solution of other problems such as south-sea problem, east-sea problem,china-india's boundary problem and so on.
These problems is harder and harder to be solved as the time going.Has we to wait servel generations?