Taiwan Criticizes Lack of U.S Support

The United States government doesn't care about nations or potential allies unless they have oil, economic potential, or a powerful lobby. Taiwan doesn't have much of lobby in Washington, unlike the mainland or Israel. They have no oil. Nor do they provide cheap, repressed labor that U.S. multi-national corporations can exploit. The day the American government begins to pay attention to the cries of the Taiwanese, is the day Communist China invades them--or will we:

Taiwan's president criticized the U.S. on Friday for refusing to support a referendum the island is planning to hold on whether to seek U.N. membership under its own name.

Speaking via video to an audience in New York, Chen Shui-bian said he believes the U.S. opposes the referendum because of China's opposition, intimidation and threat of military action.

"As a leader in the community of democracies, why can't the U.S. say no to China?" he asked. "Why can't the U.S. openly say that you can't hold a gun pointing at the head of the 23 million people of Taiwan and use the other hand to choke Taiwan?"

Chen said the referendum is the best way to show the world that the majority of Taiwanese favor the island gaining a U.N. seat. While polls show three-quarters of people support U.N. membership, he said, opinion surveys cannot substitute "a formal democratic procedure."

Chen said the people of Taiwan cannot understand why the U.S. is trying to silence them.

[...]"I'm convinced that the United States would rather improve relations with North Korea than Taiwan," Chen said. "The U.S. also believes Kosovo will be independent eventually. If you support Kosovo, why can't you support or at least care about Taiwan? Are we that unworthy?"