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Talk of the day -- China's missile overture
2010/07/31 14:29:14 |
A spokesman for China's Defense Ministry said Friday that "everything can be discussed" between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait when negotiating the establishment of a military trust mechanism, including removing the missiles aimed at Taiwan.
This was the first overture of its kind by China's military to Taiwan, which observers said is an indication that Beijing is ready to negotiate with Taiwan about the issue.
The Taipei-based Ministry of National Defense (MND) said China's offer to remove missiles was not very meaningful, while the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) and the MND formed a joint task force to explore the military trust mechanism issue for internal reference.
Following are excerpts from reports that appeared in leading newspapers:
United Daily News:
According to Richard Fisher, a U.S. expert on China's military, the number of missiles deployed by the People's Liberation Army targeting Taiwan has increased by about a hundred every year over the past decade.
Speaking at a news conference in Beijing to reporters, China's Defense Ministry spokesman Geng Yansheng said, "We have been calling for official bilateral talks to end the state of hostility between the two sides based on the 'one China principle, ' and to forge a peace agreement."
"To stabilize the situation and reduce military misgivings in the Taiwan Strait, both sides can conduct exchanges in terms of military issues by beginning with setting up a cross-strait military trust mechanism," he said.
The Presidential Office was reluctant to respond to the Chinese military's offer, while ranking government sources said the missile removal proposal alone is "not enough."
Presidential Office spokesman Lo Chih-chiang said the Ministry of National Defense and the Mainland Affairs Council are in the position to respond to the missile issue, while political sources said it is impossible that the government will yield to the "one China" principle.
Meanwhile, national security authorities are keeping a close watch on the "unusual proposition" from China.
Chang Jung-kung, director of the ruling Kuomintang's mainland affairs department, called it a "positive development" that means Beijing has begun taking a pragmatic approach to handling cross- strait ties, including mulling the possibility of removing missiles aimed at Taiwan.
In a recent speech at the half-way mark of his term, President Ma Ying-jeou did not rule out the feasibility of discussing a framework for a military trust mechanism or of a peace accord, but he cautioned that the time is not yet ripe and said there is no set timetable. (July 31, 2010).
China Times:
Since President Ma took office in May 2008, Taiwan has actively been engaged in enhancing stability and cementing peace in the strait, the MAC said. Therefore, the Chinese communists must abandon their military threat and dismantle their military deployment targeting Taiwan before the two sides can develop a sound relationship and build mutual trust.
In the current stage, Taiwan and China should focus their exchanges on economic affairs, the MAC said.
Huang Chieh-cheng, a China expert and a professor at Tamkang University who visited China in mid-July, said that China may feel a sense of urgency toward the issue of setting up a cross-strait military trust mechanism, but that it does not have a fixed timetable.
Huang said Beijing understands that Taiwan is a different society where the ruling camp needs to heed the opinion of the opposition, so it realizes that the delicate cross-strait issues cannot be tackled overnight. (July 31, 2010). (By Flor Wang) enditem/bc
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