• Military

• WMD Menu                           

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

FM REBUTS REPORT ON U.S. ANGER WITH ROC PRESIDENT

ROC Central News Agency

2006-02-05 15:55:15

    Taipei, Feb. 5 (CNA) Minister of Foreign Affairs Huang Chih-fang rebutted as "groundless" Sunday a report from the United States that claimed U.S. President George Bush was angered by President Chen Shui-bian's statement about the scrapping of Taiwan's National Unification Council.

    The minister, who took office Jan. 25, said his office is communicating with Washington over some issues of concern to the United States, issues on which there are what he described as "differences in perception" between the two sides, but he claimed that bilateral ties are not in any danger.

    Huang made the statement after the local China Times newspaper quoted a Nilson Report from California as saying that Bush was angry after being briefed by U.S. officials on Chen's Jan. 29 statement that his administration is pushing for Taiwan's U.N. access under the name of Taiwan, crafting a new constitution and considering the possibility of scrapping the National Unification Council.

    The report quoted Bush as questioning: "He did it again, after what happened last time?" referring to Chen's 2003 decision to call a national referendum in spite of Washington's disapproval.

    Huang said his office checked with senior U.S. officials about the authenticity of the Nilson report before local newspapers broke the news and claimed that the report is incorrect and that Bush was not irritated by Chen's statements.

    Claiming that the report cast a cloud over ties between the heads of state of Taiwan and the United States, the minister said his office had an obligation to rebut it.

    Huang, who served as Chen's deputy chief of staff before taking the reins of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, admitted that there are differences between Taipei and Washington in the perception of Chen's statements, claiming that U.S. officials "have difficulty grasping" the rapidly changing chemistry between Taiwan and China.

    Huang said he told officials from the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) -- the de-facto U.S. embassy in Taiwan -- that Chen's statement reflects his worries about the cross-strait situation after Beijing enacted its Anti-Session Law last March, in which China provided itself with a "legal basis" for the possible use of force against Taiwan.

    Anonymous senior Foreign Ministry officials said Huang met with Danna Shell Smith, acting AIT chief, twice in the last three days, and made it clear that the proposal to do away with the National Unification Council is still being studied by the National Security Council and that Taiwan has no intention of catching Washington off-guard by airing the idea without prior consultation.

    The official said Huang also claimed to AIT officials that it is China, not Taiwan, that has changed the status quo across the strait.

    The officials said Taipei will not worry about Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to Washington in April, as long as it can convince the United States that Chen did not mean to give Washington any trouble as a result of his Jan. 29 statement.

(By Maubo Chang)

ENDITEM/J