Ma reaffirms ROC sovereignty over Taiping Island

2016/02/05

President Ma Ying-jeou said Feb. 3 that Taiping Island is an inalienable part of ROC territory and the nation’s sovereignty over the island, surrounding waters and seabed is indisputable.

“In keeping with its role as an international peacemaker and provider of humanitarian aid, the ROC has maintained a permanent presence on Taiping Island and developed it via government projects over the past decades,” Ma said.

“We aim to advance peace and cooperation with our partners in the region, transforming Taiping Island into an ecologically friendly and low-carbon island, while strengthening its capacity for peace and rescue operations.”

The president made the remarks during a visit to the headquarters of the ROC Ministry of National Defense in Taipei City.

Last week, Ma travelled for the first time to Taiping Island 1,600 kilometers south of Taiwan and lauded stationed ROC Coast Guard Administration personnel for safeguarding the territory. He also praised the local medical service for furthering the nation’s regional collaborative efforts by providing emergency aid.

The president’s visit is viewed by international media outlets such as The Wall Street Journal and Nederlands Dagblad as sending a positive message of joint development and resource sharing while seeking to resolve disputes by peaceful means.

According to Ma, Taiping Island is the largest naturally formed island in the Nansha (Spratly) chain and boasts abundant freshwater and natural resources to support inhabitants. “This fact qualifies it as an island defined by the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea,” he said.

Commenting on recent territorial claims by other parties regarding Taiping Island and surrounding waters, Ma reaffirmed the ROC government’s stance on this matter.

“We are seeking a viable path to advocate the peaceful use of Taiping Island in accordance with the principles of safeguarding sovereignty, shelving disputes, pursuing peace and reciprocity, and promoting joint development,” he said, adding that this framework is in line with the South China Sea Peace Initiative he proposed in May 2015.

“Such a pragmatic approach has yielded concrete results, leading to the signing of an agreement on facilitating bilateral cooperation in fisheries law enforcement between Taiwan and the Philippines last November. This development is sure to reduce related disputes in the two countries’ overlapping waters.”

Going forward, Ma said he expects the government to continue this progress in a roadmap of three yeses and three noes for implementing the peace initiative. “We are saying yes to cooperation and no to confrontation; yes to sharing and no to monopolizing; and yes to pragmatism, no to intransigence.

“And we urge all relevant countries and territories to reduce tension, increase dialogue and settle disputes peacefully in the South China Sea,” he said.

“There is every reason to believe peace and prosperity will follow through abiding by international law and upholding the freedom of navigation and overflight.”

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=242075&ctNode=2194&mp=9)