October 2, 2014
No. 205
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) of the Republic of China wishes to express its gratitude to the heads of state, ministers, and representatives of 16 ROC diplomatic allies for expressing support for the ROC at the General Debate of the 69th United Nations General Assembly, which took place at the UN headquarters in New York City from September 24 to 30, 2014.
Speakers from ROC diplomatic allies at the General Debate (in alphabetical order of country name) included the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belize; the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Cooperation of Burkina Faso; the President of Haiti; the President of Kiribati; the President of the Marshall Islands; the President of Nauru; the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nicaragua; the President of Palau; the Permanent Representative to the UN of Paraguay; the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Justice, Legal Affairs, Homeland Security and Labour of St. Christopher and Nevis; the Minister for External Trade, International Trade and Civil Aviation of St. Lucia; the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Consumer Affairs of St. Vincent and the Grenadines; the Prime Minister of São Tomé and Príncipe; the Prime Minister of Solomon Islands; the Prime Minister of Swaziland; and the Prime Minister of Tuvalu.
Diplomatic allies reiterated their support for the ROC’s meaningful participation in such UN agencies and mechanisms as the World Health Organization (WHO), the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Furthermore, in line with the main theme of this year’s General Debate, “Delivering on and Implementing a Transformative Post-2015 Development Agenda,” diplomatic allies praised the ROC for assisting them in realizing the Millennium Development Goals and thereby contributing to the global development agenda.
Diplomatic allies also emphasized the importance of ROC participation concerning major issues of global concern. For example, with regard to the growing trend toward regional economic integration, they expressed their belief that the ROC, with its significant economic power, should be included in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). They also commended the ROC for playing the role of regional peacemaker, citing the positive impact of the East China Sea Peace Initiative on peace and stability in East Asia.
As a result of the strong support shown to the ROC by diplomatic allies, as well as the international symposium entitled “Post-2105 Development Agenda, Climate Change and Island Partnership” held by the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York on September 22 in cooperation with the Academic Council on the United Nations System (ACUNS) and the Global Island Partnership (GLISPA), awareness has been raised in the UN of the substantive contributions that can be made by the ROC. Indeed, the ROC has demonstrated that it is ready and willing to expand its participation in the UN system.
MOFA would like to once again thank diplomatic allies for conveying in concrete terms their firm support of the ROC’s meaningful participation in the UN system during the General Debate of this year’s UN General Assembly. In the future, the ROC government, in accordance with the principles of safeguarding sovereignty, protecting national dignity, and advancing the people’s welfare, will continue to actively pursue greater participation in the UN system through pragmatic and rational means, so as to expand the country’s international space.(E)