SunWuKong
09-22-2004, 02:12 PM
Taiwan frets over US 'spy crisis'
By Mac William Bishop
TAIPEI - When the news of the arrest of senior US diplomat Donald W Keyser first broke in Taiwan, the results were comical. A series of sensational articles ran in Chinese-language dailies reporting everything from love triangles to a political purge in the US State Department of pro-China figures, according to some reports, and of pro-Taiwan figures, according to others.
Keyser, 61, a highly respected "China hand", has not been accused of spying for Taiwan, but that didn't stop Taiwan's media from hyperventilating over the US-Taiwan "spy crisis" and what it might portend for the future of ties between the two. Some officials even expressed fears the arrest signaled that the United States was backing away from its long-standing commitment to the island.
Keyser was arrested by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents after he was seen allegedly "passing documents" to two Taiwanese intelligence agents on September 4 in a restaurant in the US state of Virginia. According to the charges filed by the authorities, Keyser is accused of violating State Department regulations for his failure to properly report a visit he made to Taipei last year - but not spying.
The Taiwanese agents were Lieutenant-General Huang Kuang-hsun and Cheng Nien-tse, representatives of Taiwan's National Security Bureau (NSB). Huang is the official head of the NSB in the US. It is common for governments to have open intelligence representatives in foreign countries (even China has non-clandestine intelligence agents in the US), to facilitate the exchange of information and enhance dialogue. Diplomats, military officials and intelligence officers regularly meet with their counterparts and "talk shop" as part of their duties. Such open intelligence exchanges are governed by the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and Optional Protocols of 1961.
A 32-year veteran of the US Foreign Service, Keyser's career peaked last January when he was designated principal deputy assistant secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs. Virtually every US government official this correspondent spoke to in Taiwan knew Keyser personally and expressed a favorable opinion of him, his professionalism and honesty. One diplomatic source described Keyser as "a very smart man with an acid tongue".
One of the most curious aspects of the Keyser case is the fact that he has never been considered pro-Taiwan, and several news reports quoted colleagues as saying Keyser was "balanced and prudent", "neutral in his views", "a polished diplomat" possessing "complete integrity".
Such comments have led many observers to question the veracity of the case against Keyser, and the ambiguous and unimpressive nature of the FBI's charges only further the overall dissatisfaction felt by many US foreign-policy officials who interact with Taiwan.
more... (http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/FI23Ad08.html)
on a side note that isn't actually the topic of this article - if this guy was Chinese/Taiwanese, he would be thrown in solitary confinement by now and charged with spying.
By Mac William Bishop
TAIPEI - When the news of the arrest of senior US diplomat Donald W Keyser first broke in Taiwan, the results were comical. A series of sensational articles ran in Chinese-language dailies reporting everything from love triangles to a political purge in the US State Department of pro-China figures, according to some reports, and of pro-Taiwan figures, according to others.
Keyser, 61, a highly respected "China hand", has not been accused of spying for Taiwan, but that didn't stop Taiwan's media from hyperventilating over the US-Taiwan "spy crisis" and what it might portend for the future of ties between the two. Some officials even expressed fears the arrest signaled that the United States was backing away from its long-standing commitment to the island.
Keyser was arrested by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents after he was seen allegedly "passing documents" to two Taiwanese intelligence agents on September 4 in a restaurant in the US state of Virginia. According to the charges filed by the authorities, Keyser is accused of violating State Department regulations for his failure to properly report a visit he made to Taipei last year - but not spying.
The Taiwanese agents were Lieutenant-General Huang Kuang-hsun and Cheng Nien-tse, representatives of Taiwan's National Security Bureau (NSB). Huang is the official head of the NSB in the US. It is common for governments to have open intelligence representatives in foreign countries (even China has non-clandestine intelligence agents in the US), to facilitate the exchange of information and enhance dialogue. Diplomats, military officials and intelligence officers regularly meet with their counterparts and "talk shop" as part of their duties. Such open intelligence exchanges are governed by the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and Optional Protocols of 1961.
A 32-year veteran of the US Foreign Service, Keyser's career peaked last January when he was designated principal deputy assistant secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs. Virtually every US government official this correspondent spoke to in Taiwan knew Keyser personally and expressed a favorable opinion of him, his professionalism and honesty. One diplomatic source described Keyser as "a very smart man with an acid tongue".
One of the most curious aspects of the Keyser case is the fact that he has never been considered pro-Taiwan, and several news reports quoted colleagues as saying Keyser was "balanced and prudent", "neutral in his views", "a polished diplomat" possessing "complete integrity".
Such comments have led many observers to question the veracity of the case against Keyser, and the ambiguous and unimpressive nature of the FBI's charges only further the overall dissatisfaction felt by many US foreign-policy officials who interact with Taiwan.
more... (http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/FI23Ad08.html)
on a side note that isn't actually the topic of this article - if this guy was Chinese/Taiwanese, he would be thrown in solitary confinement by now and charged with spying.