Espionage case has no effect on Taiwan-U.S. communications: envoy
ROC Central News Agency
2011/02/11 11:21:48
Washington, Feb. 10 (CNA) The case of a Taiwanese military officer spying for China is not likely to affect communications and dialogue between Taiwan and the United States, Taiwan's deputy representative in Washington, D.C. said Thursday.
Over the years, Taiwan and the U.S. have built mutual trust, which will not be affected by the recent espionage case, Leo Lee said at a routine news briefing.
He was referring to the case of army general Lo Hsien-che who has been detained on charges of espionage, following searches at his residence and office on Jan. 25. The 51-year-old one-star general is one of Taiwan's highest-ranking military officials to have been accused of spying for China in more than two decades.
Lo reportedly had access to a joint Taiwan-U.S. military communications project known as Po Sheng, which gave rise to concern that the espionage case could affect Taiwan's military trust and cooperation with the U.S. and even its procurement of U.S.-built weapons.
But Lee said Lo's alleged act of betrayal is not expected to hinder U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, a view that U.S. authorities also expressed after the case broke.
Asked when routine talks under the Taiwan-U.S. Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA), signed in September 1994, are likely to resume, Lee said the two sides are in the process of discussing relevant matters.
He stressed that both sides have agreed to resume bilateral talks under the TIFA, which provides an official framework for Taiwan-U.S. dialogue on trade and economic issues in the absence of formal diplomatic ties.
However, the two countries have not held any TIFA talks since 2007, due chiefly to a conflict over Taiwan's ban on U.S. beef imports on the basis of mad cow disease concerns.
As Taiwan has opened its market wider to U.S. beef since late 2009, the two sides were scheduled to resume TIFA talks in Taipei in late last month, but the U.S. decided to postpone the talks indefinitely after some American beef products were pulled off the market because they were found to contain residues of an animal muscle-growth drug.
Lee said Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Department of Health are weighing how to resolve the issue and he believes that both agencies are moving in the right direction.
The deputy envoy, however, declined to comment on whether Taiwan would follow the minimum residual level to be announced by the Codex Alimentarius Commission.
Existing Taiwan law bans the use of any animal feed additives, such as ractopamine which promotes leanness in pork and beef.
The U.S. has urged Taiwan to follow in the footsteps of other countries such as Australia, Canada, and New Zealand and set an acceptable minimum residual level for ractopamine in pork and beef. (By Zep Hu and Sofia Wu) enditem /pc
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