Taiwan Today

Sometimes known as "the best friend of the United States" in Asia, the Republic of China had a warm welcome ready for Vice President Spiro T. Agnew when he came for a brief but busy visit at the start of a new year and a new decade. Press representatives traveling with Vice President Agnew said the Taiwan reception was the warmest during the course of the 10-country goodwill tour. So contagious was the feeling of friendship that Agnew plunged into welcoming crowds to shake hands. His security detail might not have permitted such a spontaneous gesture in other places.

President Chiang Kai-shek met with Vice President Agnew twice and was host at a state dinner. The two leaders continued their discussions right up to the moment of the departure ceremonies at Sungshan Military Airport. President Chiang threw the protocol book out the window and accompanied the former Maryland governor to the airport.

Vice President Agnew brought assurances from President Richard Nixon and the U.S. government that all defense commitments to the Republic of China and other countries of free Asia would be honored to the letter. As Air Force 2 flew on to Bangkok, Agnew told reporters that President Chiang had expressed his concern "that the security of Taiwan was in constant danger and hoped that we would continue to recognize that the danger would continue to exist".

The Vice President took note of President Chiang's opposition to the American attempts to develop a "meaningful dialogue" with the Chinese Communists. Although the Chinese leader was firm, Agnew said, he was also fair-minded. Agnew mentioned changes in the pattern of U.S. 7th fleet Taiwan Straits patrolling. He said that changes had made coverage of the straits "even greater" than before. "Our vessels will stop at Taiwan as a port of call," Agnew said, "to give evidence of our continued commitment and support."

Vice President Agnew flew into Taipei from Saigon the afternoon of January 2. Mrs. Agnew, who did not go to Vietnam, had arrived from Manila a few minutes earlier. At planeside to meet his American counterpart was Vice President (and Prime Minister) C. K. Yen. Vice President Agnew received a 19-gun salute and met top government officials and members of the diplomatic corps.

In his welcoming remarks, Vice President Yen said:

"As the decade of the seventies dawns on us, I am exceedingly happy to welcome you, Mr. Vice President, Mrs. Agnew and members of your party upon your arrival in our country.

"Two and a half years ago, during my visit to your country, I had the pleasure of meeting with you at a White House luncheon. Since then, I have been looking forward to having an opportunity of renewing our acquaintance. Your visit here, therefore, fulfills a long-cherished wish on my part.

"As the Vice President of the United States, you have rendered a great service to your country by assisting President Richard Nixon in tackling a wide range of domestic and international problems. You have not only won the admiration and respect of broad sections of the American people but have also made many friends overseas for your country.

"Mr. Vice President, I am glad to note that Commander Eugene Cernan, astronaut on the Apollo 10 moon flight, is a member of your entourage. He and all other American space heroes have already become household names in the Republic of China. Thanks to the successful American explorations of the moon, free peoples on this planet have gained additional knowledge about the universe that surrounds us. While complimenting our American friends for their achievements, my thoughts cannot but turn to the millions of compatriots on the mainland, for they have been deprived of even the basic human right to be informed of tills epochal accomplishment in human history.

"China and the United States were allies during two world wars and today we are allies in the defense of freedom in this part of the world. Traditionally we have maintained the most friendly relations. During the past two decades, our relationship has become all the closer. This has been fully demonstrated in terms of our political, military, economic and scientific cooperation, from which our two countries have both benefited a great deal.

"Mr. Vice President, I am confident that your visit to our country will further strengthen the ties of friendship and cooperation that already happily exist between our two nations. Once again I extend to you, Mr. Vice President, Mrs. Agnew and members of your entourage our warmest welcome and wish you a pleasant sojourn in our country."

Vice President Agnew's arrival statement said:

"In this, my first visit to Asia, I am especially pleased to have an opportunity to meet with the Chinese people, whose immense cultural tradition has had such a long and beneficial influence on other societies. My forefathers came from Greece, another land of great intellectual and artistic achievement, a land which has in many ways provided to Western culture the same stimulus that Chinese culture has provided to Asia.

"I have not come to Taipei to make any startling pronouncements, nor am I bringing with me any new American initiatives. I have come rather to meet with the distinguished leaders of this country and to learn from them their desires and hopes for the future of Asia.

"Although I personally come from the Eastern Shore of the United States, I fully realize that my country is a member of the Pacific community of nations. We intend to remain an active and concerned member of that community. But we also realize that the future of Asia is in the hands of the Asian peoples themselves and in their willingness and ability to work with each other toward common goals.

"The United States wishes to cooperate fully in this Asian effort. We intend to honor our defense commitments to the Republic of China and our other allies in East Asia. It is our purpose to extend our assistance to those seeking peace with justice and the development of the social, economic and political well-being of their citizens.

"This is our determination and our hope for the future of Asia. I am looking forward to discussing with President Chiang Kai-shek and with other members of his government the means to implement this policy in order to reach our common goal, a lasting peace in Asia.

"It is a special and unusual privilege for Mrs. Agnew and me to have with us Commander and Mrs. Eugene A. Cernan. Commander Cernan is one of the Apollo astronauts and brings special greetings from the President and people of the United States to the President and people of the Republic of China.

"At the direction of the President of the United States, Commander Cernan has brought with him, to commemorate this occasion and to highlight the feeling of rapport that exists between the people of the United States and the people of the Republic of China, a portion of the surface of the moon and several photographs of your beautiful country taken from the incredible vistas of space.

"Commander Cernan has informed me that he is looking forward to conversing with your leaders and with many of the people of your country about the desire of the United States to make the exploration of space a truly international objective.

"Again, let me say how pleased Mrs. Agnew and I are to be here. We have heard much of the splendid accomplishments of the Chinese people, not only in your own economic and social development but in sharing your experience and knowledge with other countries. I know that I shall learn much that will be most valuable to me when I return to my own country."

Soon after his arrival, Vice President Agnew went to the Executive Yuan (cabinet) building in downtown Taipei for a briefing on industrial and agricultural progress in Taiwan province. After that Vice Presidents Agnew and Yen, the members of the Agnew party and Chinese cabinet ministers held a 70-minute discussion of Sino-American relations, the Chinese mainland situation and other matters of common interest.

Mrs. Agnew followed a separate schedule. She visited the Chinese Women's Anti-Aggression League and Hua Hsing Orphanage established by Madame Chiang Kai-shek. One of the children she greeted at the orphanage was 7-year-old Wang Ho-feng, who is supported by Mrs. Debrah Warner Voulopas, the sister of Vice President Agnew's secretary. The children presented a program of Chinese music and dances. Paintings, carvings and handicrafts were on display. Mrs. Agnew received a bouquet and presented the orphanage with a framed picture of the Apollo 11 moon landing. Mrs. Agnew was accompanied by Mrs. C. K. Yen, the wife of the Chinese Vice President. Other members of the party were Mrs. Eugene Cernan, wife of the astronaut; Mrs. Ann Thompson, Mrs. Agnew's press secretary; Mrs. Wei Tao-ming, wife of the Chinese foreign minister; and Mrs. Dorothy McConaughy, wife of the American ambassador. Mrs. Agnew spent 10 minutes talking to Miss Chiang Hsueh-chu, the Hwa Hsing principal, about the children and the school.

Vice President Agnew's first meeting with President Chiang was at 6:30 and lasted for an hour. Before the state dinner, Commander Cernan presented a piece of moon rock and four photographs taken by Apollo 11 astronauts to President Chiang. The dinner was held at the presidential residence. President Chiang toasted President Nixon. In his toast to President Chiang, Vice President Agnew said: "Our two countries have long been associated in many common endeavors. Together we have shared triumph and travail. Americans cherish that relationship and the confidence it affords us as we look to the future." He also cited the Republic of China's contributions to regional cooperation in East Asia.

Also present at the dinner were Commander and Mrs. Cernan, U.S. Senator Hugh A. Scott, the Republican leader; U.S. Ambassador and Mrs. Walter McConaughy; Vice Admiral John L. Chew, commander of the Taiwan Defense Command, and Mrs. Chew; Oscar V. Armstrong, deputy chief of mission, U.S. Embassy, Taipei; Vice President and Mrs. C. K. Yen; Presidential Secretary-General Chang Chun; Deputy Prime Minister Chiang Ching-kuo; Foreign Minister and Mrs. Wei Tao-ming; and Vice Foreign Minister and Mrs. James Shen.

President Chiang suggested that Vice President and Mrs. Agnew take a look at Taipei by night after the meeting. They did so, accompanied by Vice President and Mrs. Yen, and then returned to the Grand Hotel. The press corps had been dinner guests of James Wei, director-general of the Government Information Office. A press conference was held at the Grand Hotel after Vice President Agnew's return. Hubert Thompson, Agnew's press secretary, said the atmosphere at the Chiang-Agnew meeting and the state dinner was friendly and warmly cordial.

On the morning of January 3, Vice President and Agnew had a "working breakfast" with Deputy Prime Minister Chiang, the elder son of President Chiang. He then went to the Yuanshan Martyrs Shrine to place a wreath in tribute to the Republic of China's war dead. Mrs. Agnew followed a separate itinerary in which she visited the National Palace Museum to sec China's greatest collection of art treasures.

Half an hour of Vice President Agnew's second meeting with President Chiang was spent in private discourse between the two leaders. Only an interpreter was present. Participating in the larger talks were Vice President Yen, Presidential Secretary-General Chang, Deputy Prime Minister Chiang, Foreign Minister Wei, Vice Foreign Minister Shen, Ambassador McConaughy, C. Stanley Blair and Frederick F. Chien. With time running short, President Chiang decided to accompany Vice President Agnew to the airport.

In his departure statement, Vice President Agnew said:

"Mrs. Agnew and I wish to thank President and Madame Chiang and Vice President and Mrs. Yen and the government of the Republic of China for the warm reception and the general hospitality which have been extended to us. We regret that it has been such a short visit and that we cannot remain longer in your beautiful and stimulating country. I understand that there is a Chinese saying, 'Hearing one hundred times is not equal to one look'. Even after such a brief visit, I know how true that is.

"I have been most impressed by the industriousness of the Chinese people, by their love for the beautiful and by their efforts to retain the best of their traditional culture throughout the many changes involved in industrial and technological development.

"My conversations with President Chiang and other members of your government have been most useful. I am reassured that we will continue to cooperate closely in the constructive efforts the Republic of China is making in this part of the world in which the United States has such a deep interest and concern. We have discussed many questions and reviewed the current situation in Asia and the world at large.

"I have profited from the insight which you have given me, not only into the problems we face together, but of the hopeful possibility for advancing toward our common goal of a lasting peace. Dangers remain along the path to that goal and we shall stand firm together in meeting them.

"But much is being accomplished which holds promise of a better and more secure life for all the peoples of Asia. There is no more convincing proof of that promise than what I have seen and heard here. "We wish we could remain longer with you and our friends. But until we can come again, we shall have the warmest memory of this pleasant and profitable visit."

The New York Daily News commented editorially:

"Vice President Spiro T. Agnew, on what seems to be building into a triumphal tour of various Far East countries, arrived yesterday in Taipei, capital of free China.

"Free China is Generalissimo and Mme Chiang Kai-shek's big, beautiful and prosperous island of Taiwan, or Formosa, about 100 miles off Red-enslaved mainland China.

"At a state dinner given in his honor last night by the Chiangs, Mr. Agnew gave a solemn assurance that 'we are pledged to stand firm to the commitments we have made to our allies'—despite current White House nods toward Red China's robber regime in Peking.

"As Gen. Douglas MacArthur pointed out long ago, a friendly Taiwan is the keystone of our far-Pacific defense line and an unsinkable aircraft carrier in an area where we need one. To alienate free China in any way, or weaken our military cooperation with it, could be suicidal.

"Regarding the above-mentioned Nixon nods toward Red China, we think they're fine if they are meant to worry Soviet Russia's tyrants. Otherwise, we think they could De perilous for the entire free world."

Welcoming Vice President Agnew, the China News said: "Judging from the public record, Spiro Agnew should like it here. He is our kind of people, a man of old-fashioned integrity—conservative without being square...

"The State Department has already announced that Vice President Agnew is bringing assurances of continued U.S. intention to honor its commitments to the Republic of China. That is welcome, of course, but free Chinese never expected anything less from the United States.

"Our concern is not with the letter of the Sino-American mutual assistance treaty but with its spirit.

"Through the last 20 years, the United States has never had any legal obligation to regard the Republic of China as sovereign over the mainland, nor to help the ROC defeat the Chinese Communists and move back across the Taiwan Straits.

"But in moral terms, the United States has steadfastly regarded the Republic of China as the mainstream of Chinese life and politics. The Americans have quietly worked for the overthrow of Chinese Communism and the return to the mainland of peaceful and responsible government.

"But helping the Republic of China and eschewing all but the most tenuous relationships with the Chinese Communists, the Washington administrations of Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy and Johnson endeavored to further the cause of a free and democratic mainland.

"Several developments have given cause for ROC concern since the Nixon administration came to office. Contacts with Peiping have been renewed at Warsaw. The United States has relaxed trade and travel barriers. High officials of the administration talk more softly to the Chinese Reds and a big stick is nowhere in sight...

"So in welcoming Vice President Agnew, we cannot tell a white lie and say that there is no rift in the Sino-American relationship. He wants the whole story, obviously, and this includes the fact that the Republic of China fears growth of the U.S. tendency to compromise or appease in the matter of the Chinese Communists.

"This is a self-interested point of view. Our survival as a free and independent nation is at stake. But the future U.S. position involves much more than what happens to Taiwan or on the mainland. In the end, and that is likely to be during the 1970s, the fate of the whole Asian region will be decided by what the United States does or doesn't do.

"The prospect is easily seen and all Asia agrees on it. Either the Chinese Communists will be gone from the scene or they will dominate this part of the world. In its preoccupation with the Vietnam war, the United States sometimes loses sight of the fact that Asia's decisive confrontation is between the Americans and Chinese Communists.

"This country accepts the Nixon doctrine. We and other free Asians are prepared to fight our own battles. However, without American weaponry and the moral support inherent in an adamant American stand against the aggressive 'people's war' of the Chinese Reds, our steps of defense will be mere delaying actions. The final curtain for an Asia required to make accommodation with the Chinese Communists would be withdrawal of the United States from the Western Pacific."

After Agnew's departure, the same paper called attention to the Nixon administration's announced intention to seek relaxation of tensions and said:

"It would seem that the United States wants to maintain the Asian status quo while mitigating its anti-Communist stand. The Americans have tried to have things both ways before—always unsuccessfully...

"Japan attacked China and brought on the Pacific War largely as the result of American indecisiveness. The United States frowned on Japanese expansionism but did nothing to stop it. Japan finally reached the conclusion that the United States would not fight for Asia and the Far East.

"Now the United States is following a not so dissimilar course with respect to the threat of Chinese Communist aggression. Peiping is told that the Americans do not threaten mainland security, that the United States wants only to be a friend—to trade, to travel, perhaps to recognize and invite the representatives of Mao Tse-tung to sit down in the United Nations.

"The catch is that the Chinese Communists do not want any part of such an arrangement. They are convinced, as once the Japanese were, that the United States will turn its back and leave this hair of the world to be communized in the Maoist image. But they may pretend to go along to a certain extent—just as the Japanese negotiated in Washington while bombers spewed their loads on Hawaii—in the hope Americans will reduce their commitments and physical presence in the Asian area.

"When the Chinese Communists strike at Taiwan or other targets, the United States will be faced with repetition of the decision of December 7, 1941. This country puts full credence in the promises of President Nixon and Vice President Agnew. The United States will fight in what is likely to become World War III. As before, the alternative will be loss of the Far East and the Pacific to an implacable enemy.

"The Republic of China believes this is the war that isn't really necessary. If the line is held against the Chinese Communists now and in the years just ahead, Peiping will not be able to perpetrate a Pearl Harbor or its equivalent.

"Security for free China and free Asia is to be found where the Communist-held Chinese mainland meets the sea and not in after-the-fact response to new acts of aggression."

Vice President Agnew went from Taipei to Bangkok, where he repeated U.S. intention to keep its commitments. This was welcomed in the Republic of China, and the News commented:

"Agnew's statement that some Americans 'are so anxious to make friends of our enemies that they even seem ready to make enemies of our friends' implies that the Nixon administration has not knuckled under to the doves and has no intention of doing so. The Agnew reassurances do not set all doubts at rest but they are a step in the right direction. Thailand sleeps a little easier tonight. So do those who understand the pivotal character of Thailand's position in the defense of free East Asia."

Agnew was making his first trip to Asia and one of his very few outside the United States. He had too many stops in too few days, and some were complicated by rifts in the relationship between the country visited and the United States. Nevertheless, for a new Vice President, and one with so little international experience, Spiro Agnew wore remarkably well. The Republic of China liked him and what he had to say. Time, which has been no friend of Agnew, was moved to remark in the issue of February 2: "Spiro Agnew is emerging as a politician and a power in his own right as no Vice President—including Richard Nixon—ever did."