TSAI SAYS BEIJING'S POACH IS UNILATERAL STATUS QUO CHANGE|中國強勢挖牆角 蔡:片面改變台海現狀

The DPP government has been in power just over a year, and now the second diplomatic ally has jumped ship and established diplomatic relations with China. President Tsai Ing-wen criticised that this was a unilateral change of the status quo. She said that the ROC would re-assess cross-strait relations. Analysts say with Panama's loss there is a gap in south central American allies and this may have a domino effect on the Vatican and other Catholic countries. At the DPP central standing committee meeting, President Tsai was not willing to respond to the possibility of loss of other allies. However, she excoriated Beijing for its methods. The US State Dept. emphasised that it was against any unilateral change of the status quo. President Tsai said Beijing's action was exactly that. ==CHIU LI-LI DPP Spokesperson== This break-off of diplomatic relations is seen internationally as a unilateral change in the status quo and this provocation not only affects regional peace and stability but also destroys cross-strait interaction. President Tsai said the ROC would re-assess the cross-strait relationship. However, the loss of Panama as a diplomatic ally means that there is a gap in Catholic Central-South American countries and may provoke a domino effect of severed relations. ==SHEN LYU-HSIN Former ROC Representative to the US== I think the religious support is unstable but I hope it won't happen so quickly, there are other countries, if the Vatican falls, then there may be a domino effect as the other central South American countries are all Catholic. Veteran independence activist Koo Kwang-ming welcomed the move saying it was tantamount to declaring that Taiwan is a sovereign independent country, and he also supported Tsai's hard response to Beijing. ==KOO KWANG-MING Presidential Office Advisor== You shouldn't take soft attitude to China, this time what that Tsai Ing-wen said she was completely different from before and I think that's really good. Cross-strait relations are tense and analysts call on the Tsai government to consider objectively how to break through the impasse in relations, otherwise, Taiwan's international space will be even more restricted. TRANSLATED BY：CLARE LEAR 民進黨政府執政一年多，就有二個國家與台灣斷交，面對中國強勢挖牆角，總統蔡英文今天痛批，北京的做法是"片面改變台海現狀"，會重新評估兩岸的情勢。學者認為，巴拿馬的出走，等於是中南美洲開了缺口，可能對梵蒂岡等天主教邦交國，產生骨牌效應。 出席民進黨中常會，總統蔡英文不願回應斷交風波，不過，在中常會中，痛批北京的做法，而美國國務院針對台巴斷交風波,可能引發兩岸緊張情勢,美方強調反對兩岸片面一方改變現狀。對此,蔡英文表示,北京的做法，才是在片面改變台海的現狀。 ==民進黨發言人 邱莉莉== 這次的斷交 國際間也認為 北京的做法 是在片面改變台海的現狀 這種挑釁 不但影響了 區域的和平穩定 也是在破壞兩岸的互動關係 面對中國強勢打壓，蔡總統說重新評估兩岸關係，不過，學者認為，台巴斷交，等於是讓中南美洲出現缺口，對天主教邦交國，產生骨牌效應。 ==前駐美代表 沈呂巡== 我覺得教廷現在也是蠻危險的 但我希望不會這麼快發生 那麼還有其他國家 如果教廷再倒過去 這個骨牌效應是 因為中南美大部分其他的國家 都是天主教國家 而獨派大老辜寬敏反倒認為「非常歡迎」，認為這等於宣布，台灣是主權獨立國家，也對蔡總統強硬回應北京的態度，非常支持。 ==總統府資政 辜寬敏== 不要這個 對中國的態度 太軟弱 那麼這次 這個蔡英文的發言 對這一點 她是完全跟以前 有不同 這個我覺得很好 由於兩岸關係持續緊張，學者呼籲蔡總統冷靜思考，兩岸關係怎麼突破，是重中之重，否則台灣的國際空間，只會更加困難。 記者 綜合報導