ON GUARD:The Veteran Affairs Council warned about accepting ‘friendly’ invitations from China and stressed the importance of putting Taiwan first

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 30, 2016
By: Luo Tien-pin and William Hetherington / Staff reporter, with staff writer

The Veteran Affairs Council yesterday released a pamphlet advising retired senior military officers to avoid attending official events in China or mingling with People’s Liberation Army (PLA) personnel.

“The Republic of China Army is the Republic of China Army, the PLA is the PLA,” the pamphlet said.

The Legislative Yuan’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee is to meet today to review the council’s budget for next year, amid controversy over the presence of several Taiwanese veterans at a recent event in Beijing hosted by the Chinese government. Some have speculated that the council’s release of the pamphlet yesterday might be aimed at calming sentiment ahead of today’s budget review.

A number of veterans earlier this month attended a commemorative event for Republic of China founding father Sun Yat-sen (孫逸仙) in Beijing and were seen on video standing for China’s national anthem and apparently listening intently to a speech by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平).    [FULL  STORY]