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Taiwan needs defensive weapons: Ma's aide

ROC Central News Agency

2011/09/12 17:37:42

Washington, Sept. 11 (CNA) Taiwan definitely needs to acquire weapons systems to secure its self-defense, King Pu-tsung, President Ma Ying-jeou's top campaign officer, said Sunday.

King, the executive director of Ma election campaign, said he will get President Ma's message across on Taiwan's arms needs when he meets members of several Washington-based think-tanks Monday.

"The acquisition of defensive arms is one of the ways for Taiwan to secure bargaining chips with China," said King, a member of a visiting delegation from Taiwan's ruling Kuomintang (KMT).

Responding to Beijing's recent calls for the U.S. to reduce its arms sales to Taiwan because "cross-Taiwan Strait ties have become increasingly warmer," President Ma has openly said to the U.S. government that "it would not be a good idea," King noted.

Meanwhile, he said, during the delegation's 12-day visit in the U.S., it will also meet with leading figures from the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives as well as American officials and academics to discuss issues regarding the "1992 Consensus" and Taiwan's China policy.

The "1992 Consensus" refers to what the KMT describes as a tacit understanding reached in 1992 between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait that there is only one China, but each side is free to interpret "one China" as they see fit.

Regarding Taiwan's China policy, King said the KMT delegation will brief its U.S. hosts on President Ma's "mutual non-recognition and non-denial" policy. He was referring to Ma's concept of China and Taiwan not recognizing each other's sovereignty, but also not denying each other's right to rule.

The down-to-earth policy was aimed at reaching consensus with China on sensitive political issues and on matters regarding people's interests so as to allow Taiwan to continue to prosper amid stable cross-strait relations, King said.

For example, he said, since the two sides concluded a cross-strait pact last year to jointly crack down on crime, Taiwan has saved some NT$9 billion (US$310 million) that would have been lost to fraud and other crimes. (By Chou Yung-chieh and Deborah Kuo) enditem /pc