We're issuing this in the wake of some comments by President Chen in Taiwan that we don't want to be inflammatory or send the wrong signal, so we thought it useful to reiterate US policy on the subject.
President Chen's assurances were quite clear that the NUC has not been abolished.
President Bush has been very outspoken and I think visionary in trying to develop a framework within the international system to ensure the safe and secure supply of nuclear fuel through the Nuclear Suppliers Group.
We will continue to hold President Chen by his commitments not to take unilateral moves. We will be following events closely.
We want to ensure that all their questions are answered and that there is strong support for what the president sees as a major initiative that is both good for nonproliferation and good for the region.
We have every confidence and assurance that the statements made by President Chen are reflective of his and his party's policy.
The United States is going to push for this, whether it's the president of the Security Council or not. We used up the month of our presidency of the Security Council to move this ball forward as fast as we could and as far as we could.
It's our understanding that President Chen did not abolish it, and he reaffirmed Taiwan's commitment to the status quo. We attach great importance to that commitment, and we'll be following his follow-through carefully.
This is not about a speech by our ambassador, it's about failed economic policies of the government of Zimbabwe and President Mugabe.