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President denies report that military bases to be relocated

ROC Central News Agency

2010/03/20 15:17:10

Taipei, March 20 (CNA) President Ma Ying-jeou has not instructed that military bases on the west coast of Taiwan should be relocated to the east in order to make available land with high economic value, his spokesman Lo Chih-chiang said Saturday. Media reports that Ma issued the instruction are untrue, he said, adding that the president only said the Ministry of National Defense (MND) ought to outlines plans for military-controlled land.

Ma believes it is up to the MND to draw up a program to study whether or not to release west-coast land or find ways to integrate its military facilities, Lo added.

Local daily the China Times cited National Security Council officials as reporting that Ma has instructed that feasibility studies should be conducted on the issue of releasing valuable military space on the west coast to help the country's economic development amid the warming of cross-Taiwan Strait relations. The MND also denied the report, stressing that military land that must be preserved for military training operations will not be parceled out for economic development purposes.

Any release of such land will only take place in line with the country's policies and in consideration of national security, the MND declared. (By Lee Shu-hua, Chieh Chia-chen and Elizabeth Hsu) ENDITEM/J