U.S. arms sale to Taiwan must be maintained: former premier
ROC Central News Agency
2011/06/16 20:56:03
Taipei, June 16 (CNA) Defining Taiwan-China relations as "domestic relations with international factors," former Premier Hau Pei-tsun said Thursday U.S. arms sales to Taiwan were "important international politics" that contributed to maintaining the status quo.
"How much weaponry Taiwan buys from the United States is of secondary importance. The point is to maintain such arms sales," Hau said on the sidelines of a book launch.
Arms sales are a critical foundation for maintaining substantive ties between Taiwan and the U.S., he said.
The type of weapons and size of purchase are not important, said Hau. The links based on the Taiwan Relations Act must continue -- that is the legal basis of the relations between Taiwan and the U.S., he said.
If cross-strait relations were not influenced by international politics, why would former U.S. President George W. Bush have said that there should be no unilateral change to the status quo in the Taiwan Strait? he asked
"My reading of the nature of the cross-strait ties is that they're 'domestic ties with international factors,'" Hau said.
"This is my personal view -- everyone may not agree," he added.
Hau made the remarks in response to reporters' questions at the launch of his new book "Hau Pei-tsun's interpretation of Chiang Ksi-shek's Dairy of 1945-1949." (By Cheng Ching-wen and S.C. Chang) enditem/pc
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