18 Jul 2025 11:41 AM Taiwan does not seek conflict with China
China considers democratic Taiwan as part of its own territory and calls President Lai Ching-te a "separatist". Taiwan's government disputes China's claim.
Speaking to the Taiwan Foreign Correspondents' Club in the capital Taipei, Hsiao said that Chinese pressure on Taiwan had only escalated over the past few years but that the island's people were peace-loving.
"We do not seek conflict; we will not provoke confrontation," she said, reiterating Lai's offer of talks between Taipei and Beijing.
For decades, Taiwan's people and business have contributed to China's growth and prosperity, which has only been possible under a peaceful and stable environment, Hsiao added.
"Aggressive military posturing is counterproductive and deprives the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait of opportunities to pursue an agenda of growth and prosperity," she said.
"Defending the status quo (with China) is our choice, not because it is easy, but because it is responsible and consistent with the interests of our entire region."
Taiwan, a major semiconductor producer, is facing another international challenge at the moment - tariff talks with the United States.
Taiwan remains in negotiations with Washington, following U.S. President Donald Trump's April announcement that the island would be subject to a 32% tariff, which was subsequently suspended to facilitate talks.
"With the United States, our negotiators are literally working around the clock to strive to reach an agreement on reciprocal tariffs to achieve trade balance while also promoting further bilateral cooperation in technology, investments and other areas," Hsiao said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Nahar Net
2 hours ago
- Nahar Net
Iran says will not halt nuclear enrichment ahead of European talks
by Naharnet Newsdesk 22 July 2025, 12:02 Iran has no plans to abandon its nuclear program including uranium enrichment despite the "severe" damage caused by U.S. strikes to its facilities, the country's foreign minister said ahead of renewed talks with European powers. Iran is scheduled to meet Britain, France and Germany in Istanbul on Friday, to discuss its nuclear program, with Tehran accusing European powers of scuppering a landmark 2015 nuclear deal. The meeting will be the first since Iran's 12-day war with Israel last month, during which the United States carried out strikes against Tehran's nuclear facilities. For now, enrichment "is stopped because, yes, damages are serious and severe," Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Fox News' "Special Report with Bret Baier" on Monday. "But obviously we cannot give up enrichment because it is an achievement of our own scientists," he continued, calling it a source of "national pride". U.S. President Donald Trump responded to the comments on his platform Truth Social, saying Washington would carry out strikes again "if necessary". The 2015 agreement, reached between Iran and U.N. Security Council permanent members Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States, plus Germany, imposed curbs on Iran's nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. However, it unraveled in 2018 when the United States, during Trump's first term, unilaterally withdrew and reimposed sweeping sanctions. Though Europe pledged continued support, a mechanism intended to offset US sanctions never effectively materialized, forcing many Western firms to exit Iran and deepening its economic crisis. "Iran holds the European parties responsible for negligence in implementing the agreement," said foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei ahead of Friday's talks in Istanbul on the deal's future. Iran will also host a trilateral meeting Tuesday with Chinese and Russian representatives to discuss the nuclear issue and potential sanctions. The Chinese foreign ministry said Beijing would "continue to play a constructive role in pushing relevant sides to restart dialogue and negotiations, and reach a solution that takes in account the legitimate concerns of all parties". In recent weeks, the three European powers have threatened to reimpose international sanctions on Tehran, accusing it of breaching its nuclear commitments. Germany said the Istanbul talks would be at the expert level, with the European trio, or E3, working "flat out" to find a sustainable and verifiable diplomatic solution. "If no solution is reached by the end of August... the snapback also remains an option for the E3," said its foreign ministry spokesman, Martin Giese. A clause in the 2015 agreement allows for UN sanctions on Iran to be reimposed through a "snapback" mechanism in the event of non-compliance. However, the agreement expires in October, leaving a tight deadline. - 'No intention of speaking with America' - The International Atomic Energy Agency says Iran is the only non-nuclear-armed country currently enriching uranium to 60 percent -- far beyond the 3.67 percent cap set by the 2015 accord. That is a short step from the 90 percent enrichment required for a nuclear weapon. Using the snapback clause was "meaningless, unjustifiable and immoral", Baqaei told a news conference, arguing that Iran only began distancing itself from the agreement in response to Western non-compliance. "Iran's reduction of its commitments was carried out in accordance with the provisions outlined in the agreement," he said. Western powers -- led by the United States and backed by Israel -- have long accused Tehran of secretly seeking nuclear weapons. Iran has repeatedly denied this, insisting its nuclear program is solely for civilian purposes such as energy production. Tehran and Washington had held five rounds of nuclear talks starting in April, but a planned meeting on June 15 was cancelled after Israel launched strikes on Iran, triggering a 12-day conflict. "At this stage, we have no intention of speaking with America," Baqaei said Monday. Israel launched a wave of surprise strikes on its regional nemesis on June 13, targeting key military and nuclear facilities. The United States launched its own strikes against Iran's nuclear program on June 22, hitting the uranium enrichment facility at Fordo, in Qom province south of Tehran, as well as nuclear sites in Isfahan and Natanz.
L'Orient-Le Jour
17 hours ago
- L'Orient-Le Jour
After war with Israel, Iran seeks to strengthen ties with China and Russia
After the war comes the push to strengthen partnerships. At least, that is Iran's hope as it reels from the 12-day war sparked by Israel's "Rising Lion" operation in June. Tehran is now eager to prove that its alliances remain Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met on Tuesday, July 15, in Tianjin with his Russian and Chinese counterparts during a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in northeast China. The talks came just days after the BRICS summit in Brazil on July 6-7, and followed Araghchi's visit to Moscow on June 23. The Islamic Republic's goal is clear: use these platforms to strengthen ties with China and Russia and recalibrate its partnerships with the two global powers. More on the dynamics Are the BRICS countries going to rescue Iran after its war with Israel? A real need for armamentsUnder...
LBCI
a day ago
- LBCI
Beijing slams 'serious negative impact' of EU sanctions over Russia
Beijing's commerce ministry criticized new sanctions by the European Union on targets, including Chinese entities intended to restrict Russia's military, according to a statement on Monday, which referred to the measures as "mistaken." "The European Union's actions are contrary to the consensus reached by the leaders of China and the European Union and have had a serious negative impact on China-EU economic and trade relations and financial cooperation," a commerce ministry spokesperson said.
