DPP Presidential Candidate Frank Hsieh Aims to Talk to US about Bid to Join UN as “Taiwan”

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) is on a 10-day US visit that will take him to four cities including New York, Washington DC, Detroit and Los Angeles. According to Taipei Times, upon his arrival in New York on Friday, Hsieh said “It’s important to know whether Washington opposes Taiwan's applying for UN membership, or Taiwan’s bid for joining UN as ‘Taiwan,’ or Taiwan’s holding a referendum on applying to join the US as ‘Taiwan’.” Hsieh also said that he would try to convey the Taiwan public's opinion on the UN issue to US authorities.

Accompanied by 14 DPP legislators, Hsieh had planned to organize support groups for his presidential election campaign, visit think tanks and meet US officials and congressmen, as well as publicize Taiwan's stance on its role in maintaining peace in the Asia-Pacific region. Viewing Washington as Taiwan's most important partner, Hsieh said many factors—including the long-stalled arms procurement bill—created a confidence crisis and therefore affected Taiwan-US relation. However, Hsieh promised he would discuss key issues with Washington officials and hoped to dispel doubts.

(Excerpt from Taipei Times)