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US lawmakers introduce bill backing UN membership for Taiwan
Washington (AFP) Nov 9, 2007 Nineteen US lawmakers, nearly all of them from President George W. Bush's Republican party, have introduced a bill in the House of Representatives backing UN membership for Taiwan, a move that could anger China. It was introduced on Thursday at the House foreign affairs committee by 18 Republican legislators and one Democrat, with the move led by New Jersey Republican Representative Scott Garrett, Congressional records showed. The bill said Taiwan and its 23 million people "deserve membership in the United Nations" and that the United States should fulfill a commitment "to more actively support Taiwan's membership in appropriate international organizations." The Bush administration has opposed independence-leaning Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian's decision to press ahead with a referendum next year on whether the island should apply for UN membership under the name "Taiwan." Chen's move has touched a raw nerve with China, which considers it a provocative step towards independence. Taiwan, under its official name the Republic of China, lost its UN seat to China in 1971. Its efforts to rejoin using its official title have been repeatedly blocked by Beijing, which sees the island as part of its territory. During a recent Asia-Pacific summit in Sydney, Chinese President Hu Jintao told Bush that Taiwan's referendum plan had propelled the cross-strait situation into a "possibly dangerous period." No date has been fixed for debate on the bill in the US legislature. "It's unclear when it will come before the committee, we have no mark-ups scheduled for the next month," said Lynne Weil, spokeswoman for House foreign affairs committee chairman Tom Lantos. Chen's Democratic Progressive Party is pushing for the controversial vote to be held alongside the presidential elections on March 22, 2008. US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Thomas J. Christensen recently urged the leadership in Taipei to "anticipate potential Chinese red lines and reactions and avoid unnecessary and unproductive provocations." Names and titles are highly sensitive in the row between Taiwan and China, which split in 1949 after a civil war. Related Links China News from SinoDaily.com
US voices opposition to Taiwan referendum
Taipei (AFP) Nov 9, 2007The de facto US envoy to Taiwan on Friday reiterated Washington's opposition to President Chen Shui-bian's apparent determination to push ahead with a referendum on UN membership for the island. |
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