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Taiwan President Visits Disputed
Island |
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With only 100
days left in his term of office, Taiwan President Chen Shui-bain
visited a disputed island in the South China Sea and inaugurated
a runway on Saturday. Chen explained that the runway was built
for humanistic use in the event of shipwrecks and other
disasters.
The Spirally Islands consist of about 100 barren islets, reefs
and atolls dotting the world's busiest shipping lanes in the
South China Sea. China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and
Brunei all claim that all or part of the islands belongs to
them.
The Philippine government has expressed serious concerns over
this issue, and in the past, China and Vietnam openly clashed in
1988 and 1992 over the group of strategically located islands.
The outgoing Taiwanese president’s decision to choose this time
to visit the controversial island will definitely create
international attention. The island is believed to be rich in
oil, gas and fish stocks.
2/2/08 Houston |
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