A petition launched on the White House’s Web site calling on the US to recognize Taiwan as an independent country has garnered more than 64,000 signatures in less than a week.
The US in December 1978 severed diplomatic ties with the Republic of China and established ties with the People’s Republic of China in January 1979.
The US government should “formally recognize Taiwan as the independently governed nation it has been for over 60 years,” says the petition initiated on Monday by a user named K.W. on the petition Web site “We the People.”
Taiwan is “a model for other Asian countries to follow” as it has “transitioned from dictatorship into democracy in 1996 without bloodshed, when it voted for its first presidential election,” the petition says.
“It is a leader and partner to the United States, providing assistance to other countries with humanitarian aid and rescue teams during disasters,” it says.
“It is also a strategic partner in the Pacific, and important ally in helping to contain China,” the petition says.
“It’s time the 23 million people of Taiwan be [sic] represented in the United Nations ... and that can only happen if the United States extends formal recognition to the country, so other countries will follow suit,” the petition says.
Taiwan is recognized by 15 diplomatic allies after the Solomon Islands and Kiribati last month switched recognition to Beijing.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has noticed the appeal voluntarily launched by US citizens, which the government of Taiwan respects, ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou (歐江安) said yesterday.
The ministry would closely watch the petition’s development while continuing to deepen the nation’s partnership with the US in different areas based on good collaborative foundations and mechanisms, she said.
The petition needs to collect 100,000 signatures by Nov. 6 to trigger a response from the White House.
As of press time, it needed 35,592 signatures to reach the threshold, the Web site (https://bit.ly/33zmaP1) showed.
Source: Taipei Times - 2019/10/13
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