Thomas Christensen, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, at a news conference held specially for US-based Taiwan reporters, said the US had openly and privately expressed objections to Taiwan's UN referendum. Taiwan is planning to hold the referendum alongside the presidential election in March 2008 to ask voters if the island should join the United Nations under the name Taiwan.
Christensen said the US continued to express its concern because Washington thought the UN referendum was unnecessary and could raise cross-Strait tensions, hurting the interests of the Taiwan people and the US. (Source: Bangkok Post, Dec 6, 2007).