‘POSITIVE CAPABILITIES’: APEC members are supportive of Taiwan, because Taiwan is a constructive participant in APEC, a US Department of State official said in Taipei

Taipei Times
Date: Sep 27, 2018
By: Staff writer, with CNA

The US supports Taiwan’s full membership in APEC, a US official said in Taipei on Tuesday.

“The US always is supportive of ensuring that Taiwan’s full membership [in APEC] is never impeded, and I think there are many other economies who feel the same way and have the same reaction,” US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State and Ambassador for APEC Matthew Matthews said during an interview.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) was on Tuesday quoted by the Chinese-language Liberty Times (sister newspaper of the Taipei Times ) as saying in an interview that China was attempting to block Taiwan’s participation at the APEC meeting in Papua New Guinea in November.

China has stepped up efforts to suppress Taiwan in the diplomatic sphere by luring away the nation’s diplomatic allies and trying to block its participation in international forums, including APEC, Wu said.
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