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LEGISLATURE PASSES RESOLUTIONS DEMANDING M'LAND DISMANTLE MISSILES

2003-12-16 14:16:57

    Taipei, Dec. 16 (CNA) The Legislative Yuan on Tuesday passed two separate resolutions demanding that mainland China dismantle the nearly 500 missiles deployed along its southeast coast that are aimed at Taiwan.

    The Legislative Yuan passed the resolution put forward by the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) as well as the one jointly put forward by the opposition Kuomintang (KMT) and People First Party (PFP).

    Legislative Yuan President Wang Jin-pyng tried without success to coordinate the two camps into passing a unified version to represent the stance of the Legislature, and both resolutions were eventually passed separately.

    The KMT-PFP resolution states that the Republic of China is a sovereign, independent country and that no outside force is permitted to change its status quo.

    The resolution also states that the two sides of the Taiwan Strait have had economic and cultural exchanges over the past 15 years but that their military opposition to each other has prevented them from entering the stage of reconciliation. It added that the mainland's current deployment of nearly 500 missiles aimed at Taiwan has forced the two sides to remain in a "Cold War" state, making it a potential flash point threatening security in the Asia-Pacific region.

    For the pursuit of progress on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, the resolution further says, it is hoped that mainland China will not deploy any new missiles which threaten the security of the Taiwan people and will gradually dismantle the missiles it currently has deployed so that cross-strait relations can formally enter a normal state of exchanges and reconciliation.

    Meanwhile, the DPP resolution calls for mainland China to dismantle its missiles aimed at Taiwan and to respect the sovereignty of the Republic of China as well as the aspirations of the Taiwan people for peace and democracy.

(By Lilian Wu)

ENDITEM/Li