New Southbound Policy Portal

The support of Canada for Taiwan’s participation in U.N. specialized agency International Civil Aviation Organization was welcomed in a tweet Sept. 10 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

John Babcock, spokesperson for Global Affairs Canada, said in an article published earlier in the day by Toronto-headquartered national daily The Globe and Mail that “Canada supports Taiwan’s meaningful participation in international organizations where there is a practical imperative and where Taiwan’s absence is detrimental to global interests.”

The statement follows comments in the same piece by Winston Wen-yi Chen, head of Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Canada, that the so-called One-China policy does not mean ignoring Taiwan. “We’re talking about technical meetings. This isn’t talking about recognizing China.”

According to Chen, it goes without saying that China’s behavior amounts to bullying. “In this context, we are not part of them. They cannot control the Taipei Flight Information Region. All the air passengers rely on us.”

Nearly 70 million passengers pass through TFIR each year. It covers 180,000 square nautical miles and borders four other FIRs: Fukuoka, Manila, Hong Kong, and Shanghai.

In September 2013, then Civil Aeronautics Administration Director-General Shen Chi led a nine-member delegation to the triennial ICAO assembly, the first time representatives from Taiwan had attended the gathering in 42 years. The organization’s next meeting runs Sept. 24 to Oct. 4 in Montreal. (YCH-E)

Write to Taiwan Today at ttonline@mofa.gov.tw