Washington, Dec 06: Taiwan will hold a referendum next March to demand china withdraws ballistic missiles targeting the island and promises not to use force against it, President Chen Shui-Bian said in an interview published here. The interview, published on the website of the New York Times, is likely to significantly raise tensions with the mainland, and was Chen's most explicit outlining yet of referendum plans which have already enraged Beijing. Chen said the referendum would take place alongside presidential elections on March 20. "The 23 million people of Taiwan will firmly demand that the People's Republic of China immediately withdraw all the ballistic missiles targeting Taiwan and also openly and publicly announce and promise that they will not use force against Taiwan," he told the paper. Chen's plans follow legislation passed by Parliament last week allowing the president to hold defensive referendums when the country's sovereignty is threatened by a foreign force.

His rhetoric has triggered increasingly stern warnings from Beijing which considers the island part of Chinese territory awaiting reunification, by force if necesssary. It views any vote as a step towards ushing for independence.

Bureau Report