Taipei, May 18 (CNA) The United States understands China wants to squeeze Taiwan out of the international arena, but Taiwan should keep pushing for its own international space, an ex-U.S. official visiting Taiwan said Friday while commenting on Taiwan's failed World Health Organization (WHO) membership bid.
China has been trying to crowd out Taiwan internationally and "friends of Taiwan should actively make sure that won't happen again, " said Richard Williamson, who has served as ambassador and U.S. representative to te United Nations Commission on Human Rights.
Williamson, who was a White House assistant during the Reagan administration, also said he does not expect the new U.S. government in 2008 to change its policy on cross-Taiwan Strait issues because "Taiwan and the U.S. share the same enduring values."
Two principles that the U.S. will never change are that the U.S. insists on maintaining the status quo and stability of the Taiwan Strait and that the people of Taiwan should be able to freely determine their own future, said Williamson, who is in the middle of his sixth trip to Taiwan, his first since 1997.
Answering a media question on whether the U.S. could show more support to Taiwan on entering international organizations such as the WHO, Williamson claimed that the war on terror, the war in Iraq and Afghanistan have all "sucked the energy out" of the U.S. and the other superpowers.
However, "in the long term, the U.S. can't lose sight of an important friend, its important commitment and Taiwan Strait being a potential dangerous spot, " Williamson said.
The U.S. will "respect the strategy" of the Taiwan government if it submits the same proposal of a U.N. bid under the name of "Taiwan" next September, Williamson said, adding that Taiwan should keep talking to its friends and allies between now and September.
Taiwan needs to reach a consensus between the various parties because "any chance of success requires broad domestic support, " he added.