By Allison Jackson and Joy Chiang
Taiwan said Saturday it is an “independent” nation, hours after US President Donald Trump warned the democratic island against declaring formal independence.
Trump wrapped up a state visit to Beijing on Friday where Chinese President Xi Jinping had pressed him not to support Taiwan, which China claims is part of its territory.
Taiwan depends heavily on US security backing to deter China from carrying out its threat to annex the island by force.
Taiwan “is a sovereign and independent democratic nation, and is not subordinate to the People’s Republic of China”, Taiwan’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
The ministry also insisted that US arms sales were part of Washington’s security commitment to Taiwan, after Trump said it “depends on China” and was a “very good negotiating chip for us”.
Taiwan’s statements came after Trump issued a warning to the island against making a declaration of independence.
“I’m not looking to have somebody go independent. And, you know, we’re supposed to travel 9,500 miles to fight a war. I’m not looking for that,” he told Fox News’ “Special Report with Bret Baier”.
“I want them to cool down. I want China to cool down,” Trump said.
“We’re not looking to have wars, and if you kept it the way it is, I think China’s going to be OK with that.”
But Trump added that “nothing’s changed” on US policy towards Taiwan.
The United States recognises only Beijing and does not support formal independence by Taiwan, but historically has stopped short of explicitly saying it opposes independence.
Under US law, the United States is required to provide weapons to Taiwan for its defence, but it has been ambiguous on whether US forces would come to the island’s aid.
Xi had begun the summit with a warning on Taiwan, whose President Lai Ching-te considers the island already independent, making a declaration unnecessary.
The Chinese leader told Trump that missteps on the sensitive issue could cause “conflict”.
Taiwan’s Presidential Office noted Saturday the “multiple reaffirmations from the US side, including President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, that the consistent US policy and position toward Taiwan remain unchanged”.
“Taiwan looks forward to continuing to work with the US under the firm commitments of the Taiwan Relations Act,” spokeswoman Karen Kuo said in a statement.
Ahead of the summit, Trump had said he would speak to Xi about US arms sales to Taiwan, a departure from Washington’s previous insistence that it would not consult Beijing on the matter.
Taiwan’s parliament recently approved a US$25 billion defence spending bill that will be used for US weapons.
Lawmakers have said the funds will cover nearly US$9 billion of the US$11.1 billion arms package announced by Washington in December and a second phase of arms sales — not yet approved by the United States — worth more than US$15 billion.
Speaking to reporters on Friday en route to Washington, Trump said on arms sales: “I’ll make a determination over the next fairly short period of time.”
Taiwan’s foreign ministry said arms were “not only a US security commitment to Taiwan clearly stipulated in the Taiwan Relations Act, but also a form of joint deterrence against regional threats”.
Tzeng Wei-feng of the National Chengchi University’s Institute of International Relations in Taipei said the Trump administration was “leaning to China’s position” on Taiwan in order to have better relations with Beijing and could “change the arms sale package a little bit to show their goodwill”.
Trump “overtly stating that arms are a bargaining chip is exactly what Taiwan didn’t want to hear,” Lev Nachman, a political science professor at National Taiwan University, told AFP.
“The hope is that arm sales were non-negotiable, because it’s part of the six assurances, and what Donald Trump is essentially saying is that one of those assurances no longer matters.”
When I set out for Waterton National Park in Alberta, Canada, I imagined fall forests resplendent in golds, accented by oranges and reds. The smell of leaves composting into the earth and the peace of the earth quieting into winter. What I found was a blackened landscape, still deeply scarred by the 2017 Kenow Fire eight years ago.
When the foliage is gone, the structure lies bare. Undulations ripple along the mountainsides; seeps and drainages stand out.
The rhythms of the forest are speaking in structure, not color. This gift in this landscape of open vistas is long sightlines – a dream for wildlife spotting.
The Kenow Fire ignited with a lightning strike and burned slowly until September 11, 2017, when it blew up in critically dry conditions, surging from 30,000 to 104,000 acres overnight, overtaking Waterton National Park. The Kenow Wildfire was a fire of exceptional severity exceeding every fire since the Park’s records began in 1700. In the end, half of the vegetated land and 80% of the hiking trails in the Park were burnt.
In almost all of this burn area, most or all of the organic matter was seared away by the fire. The topsoil burned away to a depth of three feet.
Dense conifer forests are being replaced by young aspens and shrubs such as Saskatoon berry, thimbleberry, and huckleberry. It’s a bear’s delight! The conifers will come back, too. They grow relatively slowly.
Fire is necessary, natural, “normal” for these forests. Our human misunderstanding and resulting meddling have given rise to an increase in these large, catastrophic (by human standards) fires. This was a dramatic fire. The recovery is being documented and studied, providing insights into the land’s history and the resilience of nature.It’s often not what I expected, but it’s always an adventure.
If you’re interested in purchasing or licensing any images you see here, please email me at SNewenham at exploringnaturephotos.com, and I’ll make it happen.
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The post Waterton Park and the 2017 Kenow Fire appeared first on Exploring Nature by Sheila Newenham.
Luke Evans spent years working too fast and furiously to really enjoy life, let alone date anyone for an extended period of time.
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All tutorials are now out for the beginner-level crochet mesh top. The tutorials are listed below, and you can easily get the free pattern to start your own. If you need the tutorials to assist, they are ready for you as well. This is using Caron Simply Me Luster yarn, which is a fantastic, soft […]
The post Beginner Crochet Mesh Top Stitch Along + Tutorials appeared first on The Crochet Crowd.
Take a closer look at this pattern and notice the deep cutout grooves, which are called the crochet waffle stitch. Unique to this pattern is that the waffles are going in a chevron or wave formation. In person, it's a heavy blanket, and with the highlighting of shadows, it's truly a stunning crochet blanket. This […]
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