Taiwan 2008 frontrunner Hsieh in appeal to U.S.

WASHINGTON, July 24 (Reuters) The 2008 presidential candidate of Taiwan's ruling party appealed for US understanding of the island's frustration at being isolated by China and vowed efforts to restore dialogue with Beijing.

But Frank Hsieh said yesterday that as a member of President Chen Shui-bian's Democratic Progressive Party, he also backed Chen's controversial call for a referendum on whether the self-ruled island should join the United Nations under the name Taiwan.

The referendum idea has angered China but also drawn criticism from the United States, which is pledged to defend the island and is loath to see Taipei upset the status quo.

Hsieh, front-runner in polls for Taiwan's March 2008 presidential contest, vowed to boost understanding between Taipei and Washington.

Those historic ties have come under strain during the tenure of the independence-minded Chen.

''Taiwanese need to understand that the US needs to engage with China to manage a wide range of issues, from trade to the environment to nuclear security in North Korea,'' Hsieh said in a speech at the National Press Club in Washington.

''The US, on the other hand, needs to understand the changing dynamics of Taiwan society,'' he said.

Hsieh described the mindset of his prosperous and democratic island as a mix of ''widespread public demand for a greater international presence'' and ''anxiety, isolation and fear of marginalization.'' China has asserted sovereignty over Taiwan since they split at the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949 and has vowed to bring it back under mainland rule, by force if necessary. China took over the U.N. seat held by Taiwan in 1971.

Taiwan is now recognized by just 24 countries around the world, although it has flourishing economic ties with the United States, Japan and even political foe China.

Hsieh, who is squaring off against Ma Ying-jeou of the opposition Nationalist Party, which advocates closer ties with the mainland, said the United States should not worry about his leading a referendum on Taiwan's independence.

''I don't think the US should worry too much about that, because for me, I believe Taiwan is already an independent country and there is no need to promote Taiwan independence as a movement,'' he said.

Hsieh also vowed to restore talks with communist-ruled China that have been mostly frozen because Beijing has refused to deal with Chen since he won the first of two four-year presidential terms in 2000.

''We do not expect quick solutions to resolve all the differences that exist today,'' he said. ''But we believe it is possible that both sides of the Taiwan Strait can reach consensus on procedures to gradually resolve many issues.'' REUTERS CS PM0633