Taiwan sends veterans to Washington for closer military exchanges
- Army and navy veteran duo to set up office in Taipei’s de facto embassy and foster interactions between active and retired officers
- ‘Retired’ status may help them work better with the influential Veterans of Foreign Wars of the US, lawmaker from Taiwan’s ruling party says
Observers said the dispatch – the first ever from Taipei’s Veterans Affairs Council – was expected to pave the way for more frequent exchanges between US and Taiwanese military officials, both active and retired, and increased bilateral cooperation, despite protests from Beijing.
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According to the Veterans’ Affairs Council, retired army major general Ni Pang-chen and retired navy captain Cheng Kuo-feng had been scheduled to leave for their official posts in Washington on Monday afternoon.
“But due to a delay in paperwork, Cheng will first leave for the US in the afternoon and Ni will go shortly after,” a council spokesman said.
Ni will be in charge of the council’s operations in the US, while Cheng would be his deputy. Their office, with a locally hired assistant, is to be tentatively set up at the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office – the island’s de facto embassy in Washington.
Ni, who is fluent in both English and Spanish, had been stationed in Guatemala and Los Angeles previously. He has experience in intelligence research, while Cheng has also served at overseas posts before, council officials said.
