President Ma Ying-jeou says the Vietnamese government must compensate Taiwanese businesses for damage incurred during anti-China riots that swept Vietnam in May. Ma was speaking on Thursday while meeting with Taiwanese businessmen working in Vietnam. Ma also called for the punishment of rioters and a guarantee that similar incidents will not happen again.
Ma emphasized that his administration will back Taiwanese companies affected by the riots.
"I hope that when you meet with Vietnamese officials, you will understand that [Taiwan’s] government will back you up," said Ma. "Whether in seeking indemnities or in ensuring that [similar incidents] will not happen again, we will persist to the end and will not give up," he said.
President Ma said that the economics ministry has sent accountants, lawyers and legal specialists to assist Taiwanese businesspeople in areas affected by the rioting. Ma said many destroyed factories have not yet recovered. He said that a country should make every effort to take responsibility for its investors.
Meanwhile, in an interview with BBC Chinese, Premier Jiang Yi-huah said the Vietnamese government has not responded to the needs of Taiwanese companies affected by the riots. Jiang said that Taiwan will take severe measures if Vietnam does not treat the situation seriously.
"We decided last week to give the Vietnamese government something similar to an ultimatum through our foreign ministry," said Jiang.
"We have asked them to face the situation squarely. Otherwise the Republic of China government on Taiwan will take certain measures, including the possibility of international intervention as the last resort. We will impose measures similar to sanctions. We have already passed this message on to the Vietnamese government," he said.
China’s decision to move an oil rig into a disputed area of the South China Sea sparked a wave of anti-China riots in Vietnam in May. Rioters targeted businesses with Chinese language signs, including a number of Taiwanese businesses.