‘A GOOD THING’: Taiwan Foundation for Democracy vice president Yan Jiann-fa said suspended ties ‘could help clarify the relationship’ between the two sides of the Strait
Taipei Times
Date: May 04, 2018
By: Staff writer, with CNA
The severance of diplomatic ties between Taiwan and the Dominican Republic can help
Cross-Strait Policy Association president Stephen Tan, second right, yesterday speaks at a symposium he hosted in Taipei, as Taiwan Style Foundation executive officer Anson Hung, left, Taiwan Foundation for Democracy vice president Yan Jiann-fa, second left, and Taiwanese Association for Northeast Asia Studies deputy secretary-general Doong Sy-chi, right, look on. Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
Taiwanese better understand cross-strait relations and might also be conducive for forging a Taiwan-centric consensus on the issue of independent sovereignty, an academic said yesterday.
“The suspension of diplomatic ties with the Dominican Republic could turn out to be a good thing for Taiwan, because it could help clarify the relationship between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait,” Taiwan Foundation for Democracy vice president Yan Jiann-fa (顏建發) said at a seminar in Taipei.
“People who harbored unrealistic expectations regarding China should have gained a better understanding,” Yan said. “There is no need to have fantasies about cross-strait ties, which simply cannot be achieved unilaterally by Taiwan.”
Taiwan has chosen to side with the “alliance,” which is led by the US and includes Europe and Japan, at a time when competition has erupted between China and the US, he said. [FULL STORY]
