Taipei, Aug. 10 (CNA) The more publicity caused by Taiwan's claim of "state-to-state ties" with Beijing the better, President Lee Teng-hui said on Tuesday.
In a pep talk to a group of middle-rank officials, the president, who made the "special state-to-state relationship" remark on July 9, said that the more international attention his statement receives, the more understanding of the Republic of China's plight the world will be able to obtain.
Lee said that with less than one year left in office, he wanted to clearly define the status of cross-strait relations before stepping down, in order to ensure a smooth course in dealing with Beijing for his successor.
"We do not advocate Taiwan independence, but the status of a sovereign state which is vital to the national survival and development cannot be compromised," said Lee.
What has gone, he went on, is the policy of "reclaiming mainland China by force" which was the war cry espoused by previous ROC presidents.
Instead, the government wants to transform the Beijing regime by spreading Taiwan's experience of democratization to mainland China and set the stage for national reunification, said Lee.
He stressed the importance of strengthening the island's defenses, citing as proof the reports of increased military movements which have been rife since Lee made his statement and have sparked a nose-dive in the local bourse.
However, Lee dismissed as "exaggeration" reports that Beijing's jet fighters, in saber-rattling gestures, have flown sorties across the central line of the Taiwan Strait which separates Taiwan and mainland China.
"Only two Beijing aircraft have been detected flying near the central line, one coming within ten kilometers of it and the other within five kilometers," he said, adding that he considered the near-intrusion into Taiwan airspace as an inadvertent accident due to the high speed of the aircraft and the fact that the center line is imaginary.