The Legislative Yuan has asked Premier Su Tseng-chang (???) to report to lawmakers on March 1 on the government’s controls on food imports from nuclear disaster-hit parts of Japan and its response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The request for Su to report on the two issues during the March 1 meeting of the full Legislature came after lawmakers agreed unanimously across party lines to do so after negotiations Friday, the opening day of the Legislature’s spring session.
They had originally agreed on Feb. 18 to have Su deliver an administrative report on the government’s policies on Feb. 25, but it was pushed back so that Su could address the Japan and Russia issues.
Under Friday’s deal, Su was asked to report on the government’s policies and stand for questions from lawmakers along with his Cabinet officials on March 4, according to the Legislative Yuan.
For the March 1 plenary session, Su and members of the Cabinet will be required to answer questions on the government’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and control measures for imports of food items from areas affected by the Fukushima nuclear power plant meltdown in March 2011.
The government recently removed Taiwan’s decade-old blanket ban on food imports from those areas but promised detailed measures to prevent the entry of food items containing radioactive substances.
Kuomintang cause whip Wan Mei-ling (???) said at the Legislative Yuan that it was more important for the premier to report on the two crucial issues concerning national security and food safety than to deliver his administration report.
She hoped Su can present detailed explanations and measures adopted by the government, Wan said.
On the Russia issue, Taiwan on Friday announced that it will join the United States and other countries in imposing sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, though Taiwan’s exports to Russia are relatively limited, totaling US$1.3 billion in 2021.
Taiwan’s government did not immediately provide details on what the sanctions would involve.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel