Taiwan’s government changed some rules to give more power to China and make the president less powerful. This made a lot of people unhappy, and they protested.
The opposition Nationalist Party and its friends want to make changes that would give the government more control over how money is spent, including defense spending. This is seen as a way to please China.
It’s not certain if the group of bills will become a law. The Executive Yuan is the part of the government that carries out laws. The leader of this part is the premier. They can decide to reject a law or give it to the president to make it an official law. The president has to do this within 10 days. If the government or president don’t follow the rules, the bills won’t become laws.
Many people came together outside the government building to show they are against the changes. The room where lawmakers meet was decorated with signs supporting the two different sides of the argument. People on the floor started yelling and pushing each other during their arguments.
The Nationalists, also called the KMT, support rejoining with China, which Taiwan separated from in 1949 during a civil war. They won the most seats in the legislature in January, and their candidate Lai Ching-te became president. The party wants Taiwan to be independent from China, and China does not like them.
Huang Hong-wei, a protester, said that we need to tell the lawmakers that we don’t like the laws they are making. We need to speak up now. Many people are protesting on the streets because they are upset that the legislators they trusted didn’t keep their promises.
DPP lawmakers said that KMT and Taiwan People’s Party members are hurting Taiwan’s democracy by giving the legislature more power over the government. They criticized the law for creating a secret system that the KMT has presented as changes.
“Ray Wan, a protester from Kaohsiung, said that there was no talk about the laws this time and the bills are not well-written. ” “Not talking about these unfinished laws will really hurt Taiwan. ”
The KMT is in charge of the legislature and its speaker and allies in the TPP were elected from party lists, so they don’t have to listen to any specific group of people.
For 40 years, Taiwan was ruled by strict military law under the Nationalists, who have lost three presidential elections in a row but still have control over local areas through strong connections with business and social groups. Pro-China business groups have gained a large part of Taiwan’s media market, while younger people use social media for news.
Every day, China sends planes and ships close to Taiwan in an effort to make them more likely to accept being united with China. They also want to make Taiwan’s defenses weaker, even though the US supports Taiwan’s defenses a lot, even though they don’t have official diplomatic relations.
Tag: Taiwan
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Taiwan parliament adopts measures deemed to favour China
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China begins conducting military exercises near Taiwan
China started practicing military exercises near Taiwan at the same time the island’s new president took office. The new president asked China to stop threatening Taiwan politically and militarily in his first speech.
The eastern part of China’s military is having war games with the air force, navy, and infantry until Friday. China’s state media said the military drills were meant to show that they will punish Taiwan for trying to become independent. This is because they see Taiwan’s new president as someone who wants to separate from China.
Taiwan sent air and sea forces to keep an eye on the military exercises, which its defense ministry called an unnecessary provocation that shows China’s controlling nature.
In March, Taiwan’s national security council said they thought China would start war games after Taiwan’s inauguration. China usually practices its military exercises during the summer and early fall. Beijing has also conducted military exercises before or after Taiwan’s last two inaugurations.
The drills happening until Friday are a reminder that China wants to control Taiwan and might invade to do so.
China did military exercises all around Taiwan and its smaller islands in 2022, after Nancy Pelosi visited Taipei. This made China very mad. Since that time, China has significantly increased its military threats against Taiwan, with almost daily air and sea patrols.
A recent study by the Brookings Institute found that in 2023, 7.4% more people were worried about a war between China and Taiwan compared to 2021.
As a reaction to China’s military threats, Lai’s party, the Democratic Progressive Party, led by its former president Tsai Ing-wen, has started making changes to the military and spending more money on it. They believe that these changes will stop China from invading by making it too expensive. Last year, they made young men serve in the military for one year instead of four months, and they allowed women to be in the reserve forces.
Lai is the son of a coal-miner who became a doctor and then went into politics. In 2017, when he was Taiwan’s premier, he made comments about being a worker for Taiwan’s independence, which has caused problems for him since then.
His first speech as leader of Taiwan didn’t change the current situation of not officially declaring independence. Most people in Taiwan prefer this ambiguous status over formally declaring independence. Many countries, like the United States, don’t consider Taiwan a separate country. This is because of a long-standing conflict between China and Taiwan, which started from a war a long time ago.
Lai said that Taiwan and China are not under each other’s control. This goes against China’s belief that Taiwan is part of its territory.
China’s main government office for dealing with Taiwan criticized Lai’s speech this week, saying it gave a dangerous message of wanting Taiwan to be independent. -
Accept our independence and stock threatening us – New Taiwan president to China
Taiwan’s newly inaugurated president William Lai has called on China to stop threatening the island and accept the existence of its democracy.
He urged Beijing to replace confrontation with dialogue, shortly after being sworn in on Monday.
He also said Taiwan would never back down in the face of intimidation from China, which has long claimed the island as its own.China responded by saying, “Taiwan independence is a dead end”.
“Regardless of the pretext or the banner under which it is pursued, the push for Taiwan independence is destined to fail,” China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at the daily press briefing on Monday afternoon.
Beijing holds a strong dislike for William Lai and his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), viewing them as pro-independence.
Since Lai’s election win in January, China has intensified military incursions around Taiwan’s waters and airspace, raising fears of conflict.
In his inauguration speech, Lai described these actions as the “greatest strategic challenge to global peace and stability.”
Despite his firm stance, the 64-year-old Lai adhered closely to the approach of his predecessor, Tsai Ing-wen, known for her cautious but steady handling of relations with Beijing.
Lai, a former doctor turned politician, won a three-way presidential race in January, securing an unprecedented third term for the DPP.
He served as Tsai’s vice-president since 2020 and as her premier before that.
In his earlier political career, Lai was known for his more radical pro-independence stance, earning Beijing’s ire and the label of “troublemaker.”
Chinese state media even suggested he should be prosecuted for secession ahead of the polls.
The Chinese government has yet to issue a statement on Lai’s inauguration.
However, the Chinese embassy in the UK held a press briefing over the weekend, urging the UK government not to endorse the event.
Earlier last week, a spokesperson for China’s Taiwan Affairs Office warned that Taiwan’s new leader “must seriously” consider whether he seeks peaceful development or confrontation.
And just as Mr Lai was being sworn in, China’s Commerce Ministry announced sanctions against several US companies “involved in arms sales to Taiwan”.
But on Monday, Mr Lai struck a far more conciliatory note. He reiterated he would not do anything to change the status quo – an ambiguous diplomatic status, which doesn’t recognise Taiwan as a country despite its constitution and sovereign government. China insists on this and accuses major Taiwan allies such as the US of altering this delicate agreement by supporting the island.Vowing peace and stability, Mr Lai also said he would like to see a re-opening of exchanges across the Taiwan straits including Chinese tourist groups coming to Taiwan. But he said people on the island must not be under any illusion about the threat from China and that Taiwan must further strengthen its defences.
This too was a continuation of Tsai’s policy. Taiwan’s former president believed that strengthening defence and earning the support of key allies such as the US and Japan was key to deterring China’s plans of invasion. Her biggest critics say this military investment risks provoking China, making Taiwan even more vulnerable.
Nevertheless, yearly defence spending increased up to about $20bn (£16bn) under Ms Tsai, and Mr Lai has pledged even more funds. Taiwan has purchased new battle tanks, upgraded its fleet of F-16 fighter jets and bought new ones, and has built and launched a fleet of new missile ships to patrol the 100-mile Taiwan strait.
Last September came the completion of what Ms Tsai considers the crowning achievement of her military program: Taiwan’s first indigenously developed submarine.
President William Lai (C), First Lady Wu Mei-ju (L) and Vice-President Hsiao Bi-khim (R) dance after the inauguration
Taiwan’s own allies are watching closely too, to see if his rhetoric is likely to aggravate tensions further. Mr Lai’s caution was also aimed at his American audience.His vice-president Hsiao Bi-Khim, widely believed to be Ms Tsai’s protege, is yet another source of assurance for Washington. The 52-year-old was born in Japan and mostly grew up in the US, where she also served as Taiwan’s representative for three years.
Mr Lai also faces big challenges at home. Unemployment and cost of living cost the DPP the youth vote in January, and Taiwan’s economy is seen to be heavily dependent on its hugely successful semiconductor industry – it supplies more than half the world’s chips.
And a divided parliament, where the DPP no longer has a majority, is likely to deny him a honeymoon period. The differences spilled into the spotlight over the weekend when lawmakers were caught brawling in parliament over proposed reforms. The bitter dispute and the protests that followed marred Mr Lai’s address.
But how he deals with Beijing will be the biggest question that will determine his presidency, especially as both sides have had no formal communication since 2016.Lawyer Hsu Chih-ming who attended the inaugurations told BBC Chinese that Taiwan had fared quite well under Ms Tsai but added that there is a need to maintain “good communications” with China.
“Lai said he was a ‘practical worker for Taiwan independence’. I hope he wouldn’t emphasise this too much and worsen cross-strait relations,” he said. “Otherwise all of us wouldn’t be able to escape if a war broke out.”
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Almost 600 individuals still missing in wake of earthquake in Taiwan
Over 600 people are stuck in different places, including around 450 people at a hotel in Taroko national park, because of rockslides and other damage.
Rescuers are working very hard to find and bring out bodies of people who are stuck, including two under big rocks on a hiking path.
Four people are still not found on the Shakadang Trail in Taroko National Park. This park is known for its rough and steep land.
A big earthquake hit Taiwan’s east coast on Wednesday morning and at least 12 people died. Another 10 people are still missing.
The bodies of a man and a woman were found on Friday, but their identities have not been determined yet, as per reports from Taiwanese media.
People who survived said that rocks fell onto the roads and blocked them in the tunnels. Rescuers came and helped them get out. A building in Hualien was leaning over a street and being taken down safely.
The small number of deaths from the strong earthquake was because the buildings were built well and people were taught how to stay safe during earthquakes on the island.
On Wednesday, there was a big earthquake, the biggest in a long time. The last big one was in 1999 and it killed 2,400 people.
It hit about 11 miles south-southwest of Hualien and was about 21 miles below the surface.
Several smaller earthquakes happened after the main one, and the USGS reported that one of these was a 6. 5 magnitude earthquake and was seven miles deep.
Smaller earthquakes usually cause more damage on the surface. The earthquake caused a tsunami alert, but it was canceled later.
Earthquakes happen a lot and I’m used to them. “Today was the first time an earthquake scared me to tears,” said Taipei resident Hsien-hsuen Keng.
The earthquake woke me up. I’ve never felt such strong shaking before. -
One Canadian missing following earthquake in Taiwan – Global Affairs
Global Affairs Canada and Taiwan‘s top representative in Ottawa say a Canadian person is missing in Taiwan after the strong earthquake there this week.
Global Affairs spokesperson Pierre Cuguen said that consular officials are helping the family and talking to local authorities.
He can’t give more information because of privacy reasons.
Harry Tseng, who is Taiwan’s spokesperson in Canada, said that one person from Canada is missing after a big earthquake on Wednesday. But two Canadian tourists were saved and are now safe from a national park.
Tseng said he doesn’t know much about the person who is missing. The Canadians who were found were supposed to be hiking in Taroko Gorge and they are not badly hurt.
He said they are hoping that the rescue teams can find the missing person by Thursday.
Taiwan’s news agency reports that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs says three Canadians were saved from the earthquake area, but one person is still not found.
Taiwan’s fire department said on Facebook that two Canadians were stuck with others because of falling rocks at Taroko National Park. It’s a popular place for hiking.
Taiwan’s emergency center said a big earthquake happened on Wednesday near Hualien County, 150 kilometers south of Taipei. 10 people died, 705 are stuck, 11 are missing, and 1,099 are hurt.
It happened in the middle of Hualien County, which is 150 kilometers south of Taipei.
The Central News Agency said that one person from India and two people from Australia are missing after the earthquake, and 71 people from other countries have been saved.
Report in Chinese says that people from other countries in Taiwan said thank you to the rescue teams and Taiwan officials for their great help.
Tseng said that Canadian officials have sent him many kind messages, which shows the strong friendship between Canada and Taiwan.
He said, “the bad times are finished now. ”
“People in Taiwan showed how strong and tough we are, and we hope that everyone who was affected can go back to their normal lives soon,” he said. -
9 people killed and buildings damaged in Taiwan’s largest earthquake
Taiwan had a really big earthquake for the first time in 25 years. It happened during the morning rush hour on Wednesday. The earthquake caused a lot of damage to buildings and roads and nine people died.
During the earthquake in Taipei, old buildings lost their tiles and schools moved students to sports fields with yellow safety helmets. Some kids used textbooks to protect themselves from things that might fall on them while the aftershocks kept happening. Later, a tall building in Hualien County was left leaning at a 45-degree angle and its first floor had collapsed.
Taiwan’s fire department said nine people died in the earthquake, which happened just before 8 am. The newspaper said that three people who were hiking in Taroko National Park were killed in rockslides, and the driver of a van also died when big rocks hit the vehicle.
The agency said that 50 people in minibuses are missing because the earthquake damaged the phone networks and the authorities can’t reach them. More than 70 people are stuck, but they are thought to be okay. Some of them are in a coal mine. Another 882 people got hurt.
Taiwan’s earthquake agency said the earthquake was a 7. 2 magnitude, while the US Geological Survey said it was a 7. It hit about 18 kilometers (11. 1 miles) south-southwest of Hualien and was about 35 kilometers (21 miles) deep. Several smaller earthquakes happened after the main one, and the USGS said one of them was a 6. 5 magnitude earthquake and was 11. 8 kilometers (7 miles) deep. Smaller earthquakes usually cause more damage on the ground. The earthquake made a big wave warning, but it was cancelled later.
Officials had thought there would be a small earthquake of a magnitude 4, so they didn’t warn anyone. Yet, the earthquake was powerful enough to frighten people who are accustomed to such movement.
“Earthquakes happen a lot, and I’m used to them. ” Today was the first time a resident in Taipei, Hsien-hsuen Keng, was very scared and cried because of an earthquake. Keng lives on the fifth floor of an apartment. “The earthquake woke me up. ” I had never felt shaking so strong before.
People and rescue workers helped residents, including a small child, get out of their homes through the windows and onto the street. Everyone on the mobile was surprised but luckily no one was seriously hurt. The doors were stuck closed because of the tilt.
The old school that turned into a national building and parts of the main airport near Taipei got a little damaged.
The earthquake caused traffic to come to a stop on the east coast. Landslides and debris falling from the mountains hit the tunnels and highways, making it hard for cars to move. Train and subway services were stopped all over the island with 23 million people. In the capital city of Taipei, a new above-ground train line was also affected.
The Japan Meteorological Agency found a small tsunami of 30 centimeters (about 1 foot) on the coast of Yonaguni island about 15 minutes after the earthquake. The waves were smaller in Ishigaki and Miyako islands.
The earthquake was noticed in Shanghai and in many provinces along the southeastern coast of China, as reported by Chinese media. China and Taiwan are around 160 kilometers (100 miles) away from each other. China did not warn people in the mainland about a tsunami, and all tsunami alerts in the area were removed by Wednesday afternoon.
The island is used to earthquakes, so people quickly stopped panicking after the earthquake. They have drills at schools and get notices on their phones to prepare for earthquakes.
By lunchtime, lots of people were at the metro station in Beitou, Taipei. Some were going to work and others, mostly older people, were going to the hot springs or hiking in the mountains nearby.
Stephen Gao, a scientist who studies earthquakes at Missouri University of Science and Technology, said Taiwan is very well-prepared for earthquakes. They have strong rules for building buildings, a great system for tracking earthquakes, and they teach a lot of people how to stay safe during earthquakes.
Hualien was hit by a powerful earthquake in 2018 that caused a historic hotel and other buildings to collapse. Taiwan had a very strong earthquake in September. On September 21, 1999, a very strong earthquake with a magnitude of 7. 7 happenedIt caused 2,400 people to die, around 100,000 people got hurt, and many buildings were destroyed.
Taiwan is located on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” which is where a lot of earthquakes happen around the Pacific Ocean.
The earthquake caused damage to Taiwan’s economy, but the exact cost is still unknown. Taiwan makes the best computer chips and other high-tech items in the world, and these products can be easily damaged by earthquakes. Some parts of the electricity system were turned off, which might cause problems with getting goods and money lost.
TSMC, a company in Taiwan that makes computer chips, had to move its workers out of some factories in Hsinchu, which is in the southwest of Taipei. TSMC makes chips for companies like Apple. Hsinchu officials said that factories in the city’s science park have normal water and electricity supplies.
The Taiwan stock market opened as normal on Wednesday. The index went up and down, sometimes losing and sometimes gaining. -
Taiwan shaken by powerful earthquake, causes building damage and tsunami
A big earthquake shook Taiwan on Wednesday and caused buildings to fall down in a city in the south. It also made a big wave that hit islands in southern Japan.
A tall building in a not very crowded area called Hualien was badly broken. The first floor fell down and the rest of the building is leaning to one side at a 45-degree angle. In Taipei, tiles fell from old and new buildings.
Train service and subway service in Taipei were stopped for the 23 million people on the island. However, everything went back to normal in the city. Kids went to school and the morning traffic was like usual.
The Japan Meteorological Agency found a 30 centimeter (about one foot) tsunami wave on the coast of Yonaguni island 15 minutes after the earthquake. The JAMA said that waves will likely also hit the coast of Miyako and Yaeyama islands. Japan’s Self Defense Force sent planes to find out about the damage from the tsunami in the Okinawa area. They were also getting shelters ready in case people needed to be evacuated.
Taiwan’s earthquake agency said the earthquake was a 7.2, but the US Geological Survey said it was a 7. 4It happened at 7:58 in the morning. Around 18 kilometers to the south-southwest of Hualien and about 35 kilometers (or 21 miles) deep.
Wu Chien-fu, the leader of Taiwan’s earthquake monitoring group, said they noticed the earthquake effects all the way to Kinmen, an island controlled by Taiwan near China. Several smaller earthquakes were felt in Taipei within an hour after the first big one.
The USGS said that one of the smaller earthquakes measured 6.5 magnitude and was 11. 8 kilometers (seven miles) deep.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said Hawaii and Guam are not in danger of a tsunami.
The earthquake was thought to be the largest in Taiwan since a big quake in 1999 that caused a lot of damage. Taiwan is located in a place where a lot of earthquakes happen, called the “Ring of Fire. ” This area has many faults in the ground that can cause earthquakes. -
US Senate approves a $95 billion aid package for US, Israel, and Ukraine
The US Senate has finally agreed to give $95 billion in aid to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan after arguing about it for a long time.
The Democrats wanted to pass the bill, but the Republicans couldn’t agree and had voted against it before.
The package has $60 billion for Kyiv, $14 billion for Israel’s fight against Hamas, and $10 billion for help in places where there is war, like Gaza.
The bill will now go to the House, where we don’t know what will happen to it.
The package passed the Senate even though some Republicans, like House Speaker Mike Johnson and former President Donald Trump, criticized it. It also includes over $4bn for Indo-Pacific allies.
Lawmakers said yes to the package with a vote of 70 to 29. In the end, 22 Republicans and most of the Democrats voted for the law, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
“MrMcConnell said that history will make things clear,” in a statement after the vote. “Today, history will remember that the Senate did not waver in its belief in the importance of American leadership and strength. ”
The president of Ukraine thanked the senators for passing it.
“In Ukraine, the help we get from the US keeps people safe from Russian attacks and saves lives. ” This means that life will keep going in our cities and will win over war. This was written by Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky on X, also known as Twitter.
The vote happened after the Senate stayed up all night and some Republicans made speeches against the measure.
The group of right-wing Republicans led by Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky promised to delay the process, so it took a long time to think about the bill.
“Shouldn’t we focus on fixing our own country before anything else. ” he said in a long speech to delay the bill from being passed.
Some lawmakers who want positive change, like Jeff Merkley from Oregon and Bernie Sanders from Vermont, voted against the bill because they are worried about supporting Israel’s bombing of Gaza.
The aid package is a smaller version of a $118 billion package that Senate Republicans rejected last week.
Republicans first wanted to make sure that any help given to other countries was connected to making the southern border more secure. However, after Mr. Trump opposed the plan, Republicans could not agree on whether to support it.
Some lawmakers want to put border security back into the current version of the law.
MrJ ohnson said on Monday night that the Republican-controlled House wouldn’t approve the new bill without those rules.
“The Republicans in the House said right away that any national security law must focus on our border security,” he said.
Mr Johnson said that the lawmakers need to start over and work on the law to make sure the border is secure.
Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer, who leads the majority in the Senate, praised the approval of the bill on Tuesday. He said the Senate was warning Putin that he will be sorry for doubting America’s determination.
The US gives a lot of help to Ukraine. The White House requested Congress to pass a bill with foreign aid a few months ago.
This might be the last chance for Congress to give Ukraine help. Ukraine says it might not be able to fight off Russia without support from the United States. -
Nauru severs relations with Taiwan in favour of China
One of the few countries that still supported Taiwan has decided to be friends with China instead, after Taiwan elected a new president.
Nauru, a very small island in Micronesia, was only one of 12 countries that had a relationship with Taipei.
In recent years, Beijing has been persuading countries to stop being friends with Taiwan, because they believe Taiwan is part of China.
Taiwan says that the recent defeat is connected to the election outcomes from the weekend, which made China upset.
In the election, people chose William Lai as their new president. China called him a “troublemaker” because he has supported Taiwan’s independence. China doesn’t like this.
Taiwan officials said that Nauru’s announcement is not just China’s way of getting back at our elections, but also a direct challenge to the global order. Nauru’s government said it will now see Taiwan as part of China, not its own separate country.
During a press conference on Monday, Taipei’s deputy foreign minister Tien Chung-kwang said that China is using the recent changes in Nauru’s politics to give them money in exchange for support.
China believes it can control Taiwan using these methods, but I disagree. The world has seen that Taiwan is becoming more democratic. Tien said that if Beijing keeps using bad ways to take away Taiwan’s diplomatic relationships, democratic countries won’t accept it.
However, he still is very focused on making sure Taiwan is not isolated by China on the international stage. He is keeping a close watch for any further actions from China.
China thinks that the island of Nauru, which has 23 million people, belongs to them and will be under their control in the future. They are happy with Nauru’s decision.
China’s foreign ministry said Nauru’s government decision to be friends with China again shows that most people want there to be only one China and that this is a growing trend.
This is not the first time Nauru has stopped working with Taiwan. Taiwan sees itself as different from mainland China and has its own constitution and elected leaders.
In 2002, Nauru changed its alliance to China, but later in May 2005, it went back to being friends with Taiwan.
Experts also told the BBC that Nauru’s decision was not surprising.
Anna Powles, an associate professor in security studies at Massey University in New Zealand, said that it has been possible for a while that Nauru would stop recognizing Taiwan and start recognizing China instead.
Australia moved quickly to offer a treaty to help people from Tuvalu because they were worried that Tuvalu might start supporting China instead.
“She also said there were worries about Nauru. ”
Mihai Sora, a researcher at an Australian think tank, said that China is always trying to reduce Taiwan’s power, especially in the Pacific where many small countries are trying to develop.
Because Taiwan doesn’t have many friends in the world, each one it does have is really important for its independence. China may keep trying to weaken that. -
William Lai elected president of Taiwan in historic poll
Taiwanese people voted for William Lai to be their president in a very important election. This shows that Taiwan is going in a different direction from China.
Beijing is probably going to be upset because they think Mr Lai causes problems with his beliefs about independence.
China says that it controls Taiwan, even though Taiwan governs itself. While it wants the two sides to come together peacefully, it’s also willing to use force if necessary.
It said the Taiwan election was about choosing between “war and peace”.
Beijing’s government doesn’t like Mr Lai’s DPP party, which has been in charge of Taiwan for eight years. China has increased its military around the island, making people more worried about a possible fight.
Mr Lai won his party a third term in the presidency, which has never happened before. In his first comments after his opponents admitted defeat, he indicated that this was a path that could not be changed.
The country will keep moving in the right direction. “We won’t focus on the past,” he told the journalists in a press conference.
Later, Lai spoke to a large crowd in Taipei and said that his win was a victory for democracy.
“We did it. ” We didn’t allow outside forces to impact our election. “Because we decided that only we can pick our president,” he said. Before the election, Taiwan said that China tried to meddle in the voting.
But Mr Lai also had something to say to China.
He told reporters that he prefers talking and exchanging ideas instead of causing problems and fighting, and he wants peace and stability with Beijing.
He said he will keep things the way they are between Taiwan and China and protect Taiwan from any danger from China.
In the past, Mr Lai said he wanted Taiwan to be separate from China, which made China very upset. But now he says if he becomes president, he won’t try to make it happen.
Mr Lai got 40% of the vote, which is more than Hou Yu-ih from the main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) party. Since 2000, Taiwan has switched back and forth between the DPP and the KMT, which is more friendly towards Beijing.
Newcomer politician Ko Wen-je from the Taiwan People’s Party, who is liked by young voters, got 25% of the vote.
On Saturday, people picked their lawmakers. According to Taiwanese media, the DPP no longer has the most seats in parliament. The opposition is growing stronger, but no single party has enough seats to control the parliament.
Some people think that if the opposition party controls the legislature and the DPP president is in charge, it could make governing Taiwan more difficult. -
Initial tally indicates close contest in Taiwan
Voting in Taiwan’s presidential election has finished and now they are counting the votes. The election will decide how Taiwan will be connected to China in the future.
Taiwan is an island that runs its own government and is democratic, but China says it belongs to them and other countries don’t see it as a separate country.
Early numbers show a close competition between the current Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) for the upcoming election.
China doesn’t like DPP candidate William Lai and tells people not to vote for him. KMT is saying they will have better relations with China and make peace in the Taiwan Strait.
The Taiwan People’s Party is also running in the election, but recent polls show a close competition between the DPP and KMT.
Today, there are 113 seats in the government that people are trying to win.Taiwanese voters care more about the economy than China.
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China censures Taiwanese voters denounces ‘brazen’ US
China told people in Taiwan to vote for the candidate they want, before the presidential elections in Taiwan. China says that Taiwan belongs to them.
China said that if the ruling party candidate William Lai wins, it could cause problems for their relationship.
The US was warned by Beijing not to cause trouble before Saturday’s vote, but it did not listen. This made Beijing very angry.
Who the people choose in the poll could make the island move closer to or further away from Beijing.
Taiwan is an important place where China and the US are competing to be more powerful in Asia.
China’s Taiwan Affairs office said that if Mr Lai is elected, he would continue to support actions to separate Taiwan from China.
He kept doing bad things to make others want independence. It said in a statement that Taiwan would be pushed farther from peace and prosperity and closer to war and decline.
Mr Lai from the DPP wants voters to choose the best way to keep Taiwan independent. Hou Yu-ih from the Kuomintang (KMT) said Mr. Lai is a threat to relations with China.
Many people in Taiwan feel like they are their own country, but they don’t want to officially separate from China or join it. They want things to stay the way they are.
The island thinks it is different from the mainland, but China says it belongs to the country and might use force to make it part of China.
Mr Lai was just a little bit ahead in the race to be president before voting ended on January 2nd. There are also elections for the parliament happening.
China told the US to stop talking about the election.
Beijing’s foreign ministry criticized Washington for saying it would send a group of people to Taiwan after the vote.
The US government must not get involved in the elections. “to make sure we don’t harm the relationship between the US and China,” a spokesperson said.
China Strongly disagreeing with the American side’s bold talk about the elections in Taiwan.
Beijing said the people of Taiwan have to choose between peace and war during the elections.
Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Joseph Wu criticized China for getting involved in Saturday’s vote too many times.
“Mr Wu said Beijing should stop interfering in other countries’ elections and focus on their own. ” He wrote this on X, a social platform. -
Taiwan receives missile alarm from Chinese satellite
Taiwan sounded an alarm for the whole island because a Chinese satellite flew over its southern airspace just days before an important election for a new president.
People who use mobile phones on the island received a message telling them to “be careful and stay safe”.
The “presidential alert” made people nervous before important elections on Saturday.
China says that Taiwan belongs to them and has been accused of trying to influence the vote.
The island with 23 million people governs itself and is a very important point of conflict between China and the US in Asia. Experts believe that the elections will determine how the relationship between Beijing and Washington will develop.
The satellite was sent into space from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in China’s Sichuan province at 3:03p. mlocal time, according to Taiwan’s defense ministry. Around the same time as the alert, China’s CCTV said a satellite called Einstein Probe had been launched and it was a “complete success. “
Taiwan’s foreign minister Joseph Wu said that launching a satellite over Taiwanese airspace so close to the election is a risky and suspicious activity. Reuters news agency reported this.
Mr Wu said that when a rocket flies in the sky, some of its parts might fall in our area. He said this at a news conference when the warning was sent.
“Our national alert centre will issue this alert for that reason. “”It happened again. “
Taiwan’s defense ministry is keeping an eye on the path of the satellite so they can be ready to deal with it. The satellite was very high up when it passed over Taiwan, the ministry said.
Taiwanese news says that this is the first time the government has sent out an alert like this to the whole island.
Eric Chu, the leader of Taiwan’s main opposing party Kuomintang (KMT), said that the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) government is scaring people, especially by using the word “missile” in their warning. The message said: “[Air raid alert] Missilesare flying over Taiwan’s airspace, be careful. “
This is the first time I heard that sending a satellite into space can cause such a warning. Everyone was really surprised and thought it was a missile, but it was actually a satellite. “I believe the National Defense Ministry is trying to fool the public by sending out this alert,” he said.
Taiwan’s defense ministry said sorry for giving the wrong information about a missile in a message to mobile phones.
The Einstein Probe is a project that involves the European Space Agency, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics.
The satellite will watch for special things happening in space,like twinkling fireworks, to learn more about the violent and hidden parts of the universe, China’s Xinhua news agency said on Tuesday.
In December, news in Taiwan said that Chinese rockets had flown over the island. A report from Focus Taiwan on December 10th said that a rocket launched from Xichang flew over southwestern Taiwan in outer space. -
Xi promises “reunification” before votes in Taiwan
Chinese President Xi Jinping, in his annual New Year’s address, reiterated his assertion that Taiwan “will definitely be reunited” with China.
His message comes ahead of Taiwan’s crucial Jan. 13 election, which will determine the island’s cross-strait policies for the next four years.
He also took a stronger tone than last year, in which he talked about Taiwan being part of “the same family.
” China has stepped up military pressure on Taiwan as the election approaches. They consider the self-governing island of 23 million people a breakaway province that will eventually come under Beijing’s control.
Taiwan considers itself distinct from mainland China, with its own constitution and democratically elected leaders. Separately, Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen said in her New Year’s speech that the island’s relationship with China should be decided by “the will of the Taiwanese people.
” His government has repeatedly warned that Beijing is trying to interfere in the election, in which a new president and government will be elected.
Taiwan’s Kuomintang (KMT) party has traditionally favored warmer relations with Beijing – although it denies being pro-China.
The KMT’s main rival, Tsai’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), has ruled Taiwan for eight years and has taken a tougher line on China, asserting that the country is sovereign and not belongs to China.
Mr Xi’s latest comments are in line with China’s long-standing policy of unification, but the message is harsher in tone than Mr. Xi gave last year, when he called “people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait Loan… is a member of one and the same family.
The Taiwan issue also strained relations between the United States and China, with China subsequently condemning any support from Washington for Taipei.
Beijing said it “reserves the ability to take all necessary measures” against external forces that hinder peaceful unification.
However, the two countries marked the new year with a positive message, with Xi and US President Joe Biden exchanging congratulatory messages on Monday.
Xi noted that “adhering to mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and mutually beneficial cooperation is the correct way for China and the US to interact,” according to Reuters, citing state media CCTV China.
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US secretly supplying Taiwan with military hardware
When President Joe Biden of the United States recently approved a $80 million grant to Taiwan for buying American military equipment, China expressed strong disapproval and opposition towards the decision made by Washington.
To someone who didn’t look closely, it didn’t seem like a lot of money. It cost less than one modern fighter jet. Taiwan has ordered over $14 billion worth of military equipment from the United States. Is an additional $80 million important.
Beijing usually gets angry when other countries offer military support to Taiwan, but this time they reacted differently.
The $80m is not money that needs to be paid back. It is paid for by American taxpayers. For the first time in over 40 years, the United States is using its own funds to send weapons to a location that it does not officially acknowledge. This is happening through a program called foreign military finance (FMF).
After Russia attacked Ukraine last year, FMF provided approximately $4bn of military support to Kyiv.
This money has been sent to Afghanistan, Iraq, Israel, Egypt, and other places. But so far, it has only been given to countries or organizations that the United Nations acknowledges. Taiwan is not present.
After the United States started acknowledging China instead of Taiwan in 1979, it still sold weapons to Taiwan according to the Taiwan Relations Act. The goal was to sell a specific amount of weapons to Taiwan, enough for their defense against China, but not too many to harm the relationship between the United States and China. For many years, the US has used a strategy of not clearly stating their position to work with China, while also supporting Taiwan strongly.
But over the past ten years, China has become much stronger than Taiwan in terms of military power. The old formula doesn’t work anymore. Washington says that its policy is still the same, but it has actually changed in important ways. The US State Department has denied that providing FMF implies acknowledging Taiwan in any way.However, it is clear in Taipei that America is changing its relationship with the island. This is especially true because the United States is urgently encouraging Taiwan to increase its military strength. Taiwan is not as powerful as China and requires assistance.
The US is saying that it is very important for us to make our military stronger. Wang Ting-yu, a legislator from the ruling party in Taiwan who is close to President Tsai Ing-wen, says that we are sending a strong and clear message to Beijing that we are united with US Congressional leaders.
He says that the $80 million is just a small part of what could be a much larger amount. He also points out that in July, President Biden gave permission for the sale of military services and equipment worth $500 million to Taiwan.
Mr Wang said that Taiwan is getting ready to send two groups of soldiers to the US for training. This hasn’t happened since the 1970s.
However, the most important thing is the money. According to him, this could be the start of receiving as much as $10 billion in the next five years.
According to Lai I-Ching, the president of a think-tank called the Prospect Foundation, it can take as long as 10 years to finalize agreements for military equipment. “With FMF, the US is giving weapons directly from its own supplies and paying for it with US funds – so we don’t have to go through all the steps to get approval. ”
This is important because even though a divided Congress has delayed giving Ukraine billions of dollars in aid, Taiwan seems to have more agreement and support from both sides.
However, the war in Gaza will definitely limit America’s ability to provide weapons to Taipei, just like the war in Ukraine did. President Biden wants to give support to Ukraine and Israel during times of conflict. This may involve providing additional financial assistance to Taiwan as well.
When asked about how the money from the US will be used, the Ministry of National Defence in Taipei refuses to say and just smiles without giving any information.
However, Lai believes it is possible to make educated guesses about the effectiveness of weapons like the Javelin and Stinger anti-aircraft missiles. These weapons are highly effective and forces can quickly learn how to use them.
“He says that we don’t have enough of them and we really need a large quantity. ” In Ukraine, the Stingers have been used up very fast, and the way Ukraine has been using them shows that we might need 10 times more than what we have right now.
The experts who have been observing for a long time have a straightforward opinion: the island is unprepared for an attack from China and in a very bad condition.
There are many problems. Taiwan’s army has many old battle tanks, but not enough new, lightweight missile systems. The way the army is organized, how they plan their strategies, and their teachings have not been changed for 50 years. Some front-line units do not have enough people, they only have 60% of the number of people they should have.
According to reports, Taiwan doesn’t have any counter-intelligence operations in China and its system for selecting people to serve in the military is not working properly.
In 2013, Taiwan reduced the time people have to serve in the military from one year to four months. However, they have now decided to increase it back to 12 months, starting from next year. However, there are more difficult problems or obstacles to overcome. The young men who go through it playfully call it a “summer camp”.
A recent graduate said that there was no consistent training. We used to visit a place where people practice shooting every two weeks, and we used old guns from the 1970s. We aimed at objects and fired. However, nobody was taught how to aim correctly, so everyone kept failing to hit their targets. We didn’t do any exercise. There is a test to check our fitness at the end, but we didn’t get ready for it.
He explained a situation where older army leaders don’t care about or want to teach these young men, mostly because they will only be there for a short period of time.Many people in Washington believe that Taiwan needs to quickly improve and strengthen its military. So, the US is now helping to train Taiwan’s army.
For a long time, the leaders of the island have believed that it is very hard and dangerous for China to try to invade it. Similar to Britain, Taiwan focused on building up its navy and air force instead of its army.
The plan was to get them involved in the Taiwan Strait and destroy them on the beaches. Lai says that we are investing many resources in protecting the air and sea.
However, China now possesses the biggest navy in the world and a much stronger air force. A study done by a group of experts last year found that if Taiwan were to fight against China, its navy and air force would be completely destroyed in the first 96 hours of the battle.
Because of strong pressure from Washington, Taipei is moving towards a strategy called “fortress Taiwan. ” This strategy aims to make it very hard for China to take control of the island.
The attention will change to soldiers on foot, soldiers who fight on land, and big guns – pushing back against an attack on the beaches and, if needed, battling the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in the towns and cities, and from bases far inside the island’s jungle-covered mountains. However, this places the duty of protecting Taiwan back onto its obsolete military force.
After the US ended our communications in 1979, our army was mainly alone and cut off from the rest of the world. Lai says that they are stuck following the military beliefs and strategies used during the Vietnam War in the United States.
This didn’t concern Taipei or Washington until recently. During the 1990s and 2000s, companies from Taiwan and the United States were constructing factories throughout China.
Beijing wanted to be part of the World Trade Organization, so they worked to become a member. And they succeeded. The Chinese economy became popular worldwide, and the US believed that trading and investing would help keep peace in the Taiwan Strait.
But the increasing power of Xi Jinping, his form of patriotism, and Russia’s attack on Ukraine have shattered those comforting beliefs.
Taiwan has been very surprised by the things they learned from Ukraine’s invasion. Artillery has been very successful in war because it can shoot a lot of bullets quickly and hit targets very accurately, which is very frightening for the enemy.
Ukrainian teams have discovered that they need to keep moving right after they shoot their shells. If they stay in the same place for too long, the Russians will react by firing shells back at them.
Many of Taiwan’s artillery soldiers use old guns from Vietnam War or even World War Two. These items are moved by hand and it is hard and takes a long time to do so. They would be very easy targets.
Taiwan’s openness to potential harm is making Washington take action. That’s the reason why soldiers from Taiwan are being sent to the US for training, and instructors from the US are coming to Taipei to work closely with Taiwan’s marines and special forces.
However, according to William Chung, a researcher in Taipei, Taiwan cannot rely on itself alone to prevent China from taking action. This is another thing we can learn from the war in Ukraine.
“He says that the international society needs to decide if Taiwan is important. ” “If the G7 or NATO believe that Taiwan is important for their own benefits, then we need to involve other countries in the Taiwan situation – because this will make China reconsider the consequences. ”
Dr Chung says that China’s actions have unintentionally been supporting Taiwan to achieve its goals.
China is trying to expand its power and control in the South China Sea and the East China Sea. And we can see the outcome in Japan where the amount of money spent on the military is now being increased by two times.
He says that the outcome is changing the relationships between countries in the area. It includes important meetings between the US, Japan, and South Korea, stronger military agreements like the Quad and Aukus, and closer connections between the US and the Philippines.
“He says China is attempting to alter the current situation in the region. ” This means that Taiwan’s security is linked to the South China Sea and East China Sea. This means that we are no longer alone or separated from others.
There is currently a heated discussion in Washington about how much support the US should provide to Taiwan. Many people who have been observing China for a long time believe that if the US publicly commits to something, it would anger Beijing instead of stopping its actions. However, Washington is aware that Taiwan cannot protect itself on its own.
Someone who has been paying attention to China for a long time said that we should stay quiet about our plans, but still give Taiwan a lot of weapons. -
Ex-colonel from Taiwan sentenced to 20 years in prison for spying on China
A former Taiwan air force colonel has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for operating a secret group that spied on Taiwan for China.
Liu Sheng-shu was found guilty of getting other officers who were currently working in the military to send military information to Beijing.
Five other officers, who were part of the navy and air force, were sent to prison for periods ranging from six months to 20 years because of their participation.
According to local news, Liu was asked to join during a work trip to China in 2013.
According to reports, he allegedly operated a group of people who provided information, and he paid them through fake businesses.
The prosecutors said that he received money for giving away information about the military, like how airplanes and warships work.
Besides being sentenced to jail, the authorities took away NT$16. 7m (£425,000; $514,000) that they said were earned illegally.
Liu and six other officers were accused in January by the Taiwan High Prosecutors Office‘s Kaohsiung branch. One person was found not guilty.
Some important people from Taiwan’s military have been accused of helping China’s intelligence agency.
In January, a former high-ranking military officer was declared guilty of receiving free meals and trips from a businessman from Hong Kong who was acting on behalf of Beijing.
But his punishment was put on hold because he felt sorry and had never broken the law before. -
63-year-old Ghanaian arrested for unlawfully living in Taiwan for 34 years
A baffling story has emerged concerning a 63-year-old Ghanaian woman who has been residing in Taiwan for the past 33 years without proper immigration documents.
According to a report by taipeitimes.com, the woman, whose identity remains undisclosed, initially arrived in Taiwan in June 1989 following a transit from Hong Kong.
She left in March 1990. However, the authorities are currently perplexed about when and how she re-entered the country, allowing her to remain in Taiwan without valid immigration documents for such an extended period.
“Police quoted the Ghanaian national as saying, through an interpreter, that she lives alone in a rented residence and works as a cleaner for a living.
“Further investigation is needed to determine why there are no immigration records for her re-entry into Taiwan and how she was able to reside in Taiwan illegally for so long without being discovered, police said,” the report indicated.
The 63-year-old woman came to the attention of the authorities when she was observed “acting suspiciously” by officers who approached her on October 14, 2023.
This incident took place in New Taipei City’s Lujhou District and led patrol officers to keep a close watch on her.
The report added that “when they spotted the woman, who tried to hide as they got closer to her,” they asked for an identity, which she failed to produce.
She also could not produce a valid resident permit or a passport, the police added.
Meanwhile, the police are investigating her on suspicion of contravening Taiwan’s immigration law, the report said.
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China investigates iPhone manufacturer in Taiwan
China is looking into Foxconn, a company that manufactures iPhones in Taiwan, according to Chinese state media.
According to the Global Times, who did not reveal their names, officials checked the taxes of Foxconn companies in two provinces in China.
Foxconn will work together with the investigation.
The company is the biggest producer of iPhones for Apple and is one of the largest employers globally.
The Global Times reported that China’s department responsible for natural resources visited and inspected the land use of important Foxconn businesses in Henan and Hubei provinces.
The company Foxconn says that following the laws in every country where they operate is very important to them.
“We will work together and assist other groups in the tasks and operations,” it stated.
Terry Gou, the person who started Foxconn, is now running for president in Taiwan on his own, without the support of any political party. The election is scheduled to happen in January.
As Beijing has become more forceful in claiming power over the self-governed island, presidential candidates are sharing their different ideas on how to react.
Mr Gou has established himself as a different option compared to the current Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). He gained this position because of his many years of working in China. The DPP is viewed as unfriendly towards Beijing.
However, he said he was not afraid of China when he announced his intention to run for office. He explained that if the Chinese Communist party threatened to take away his assets from Foxconn if he didn’t obey them, he would actually welcome it.
He quit being on Foxconn’s board in September when he said he was going to run for president. He gave control of the company to someone else in 2019 when he said he wanted to be president, but he still owns 12. 5%
At that time, he belonged to a big political party in Taiwan called the Kuomintang (KMT). The KMT is known for having friendly relations with Beijing.
The Global Times said that in Taiwan, some people think that Foxconn is being looked into because its boss, Mr. Gou, is running for president.
But the government newspaper also said that Chinese experts believe the investigation is normal and legal, because all companies have to go through tax inspections.
The Global Times mentioned experts who think that the investigation might affect the elections. If the people who want Taiwan to separate from China win the elections, it would be very bad for the peace and stability of the area. Chinese people from both sides, including those in business, should join forces to avoid this disaster.
Beijing says countries can’t be friends with both China and Taiwan, so Taiwan only has a few countries it can officially be friends with. The US is Taiwan’s biggest supporter, even though it only has formal diplomatic relations with China.
Some people think that China is investigating Apple as a way to retaliate against the US for imposing sanctions on them.
Rachel Winter, an investment partner at Killik & Co, told the BBC’s Today program that it seems like this could be a response to the sanctions imposed by the US.
The US has put many restrictions on China to try and reduce their technological power, and it seems like by targeting Foxconn, they will also be hurting Apple, which is one of the most successful American companies. -
Taiwan launches its first domestically produced submarine
Taiwan showed off its first submarine made in its own country on Thursday. The leader of the island, a democracy, said this is a big achievement. Taiwan wants to strengthen its military power because it feels that Beijing is becoming more and more of a danger.
President Tsai Ing-wen led a ceremony at the shipyard in Kaohsiung city for a new submarine. They officially named the submarine “Narwhal” in English and “Hai Kun” in Mandarin, which means “sea monster”.
Tsai said that the submarine is an important way for us to protect our country. “It is also an important tool for our naval forces to create unique combat strategies. ”
In the past, a lot of people believed that creating a submarine that belongs to our own country would be really hard to do. “But we succeeded,” she included.
The ceremony was an important and special moment for Tsai. She started an important defense plan to build Taiwan’s first submarine soon after becoming president in 2016.
Taiwan’s defense leaders want the submarines to make it more difficult for China to invade the island. China says Taiwan is part of its territory and has been acting more aggressively in recent years.
Reporters were shown around the place where the submarine is built, but they couldn’t take detailed pictures for safety reasons.
During the ceremony, information about the ship’s size or ability was not shared. Sandra Oudkirk, who represents Washington in Taiwan, was present along with representatives from the Japanese and South Korean missions in Taipei.
Tsai said that building submarines for the indigenous submarine project is very important to her administration.
By 2025, Taiwan will have three submarines. Currently, it has two submarines that were made in the Netherlands and started operating in the 1980s. The new submarine is called “Narwhal”.
Taiwan said they want to make eight submarines by themselves.
China’s Defense Ministry compared the new submarine to a mantis trying to stop a chariot, using a well-known Chinese saying.
Taiwan’s military is getting ready in case China decides to attack. This phrase can be rewritten as: Understand how.Protecting the group of islands closest to the mainland.
During a meeting that CNN attended last week, Admiral Huang Shu-kuang, who advises Taiwan’s National Security Council and is in charge of the indigenous submarine project, explained that the new fleet of submarines will be crucial in stopping Beijing from blocking Taiwan’s ships by sea.
The Taiwan Strait is not deep enough for submarines, but they can still be very helpful in attacking Chinese warships in the Bashi channel and the waters between Taiwan and Japan’s westernmost islands.
China’s ability to reach the Pacific Ocean is restricted by a series of islands that include Japan, Taiwan, and the Philippines. To get into the larger ocean, China’s navy would have to go through these important areas.
So Huang said that Taiwan can stop China from showing off its military power by placing its submarines there.
If there is a war, the Chinese navy wants to go to the east of Taiwan to surround and control us, and to make it hard for the US to help.
Submarines can go really deep underwater and are difficult to find, so they have a good opportunity to get close to Chinese aircraft carriers and attack them.
The statement was made by Collin Koh, who is a senior fellow at the S. The Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore stated that the new submarine fleet will make Taiwan more capable of launching a second attack if necessary.
The person said that China is very concerned about the possibility of the US getting involved militarily, so they are preparing for a big naval battle with the US near the Philippine Sea, away from the islands closest to China.
He said that if the people of Taiwan want to help, one way to do that is to keep the PLA Navy trapped within the first island chain. This will prevent them from coming out and assisting the US military intervention, making it more likely to succeed.
Admiral Huang also mentioned that the submarines can carry torpedoes made in the US, called MK-48, which can be used to attack ships on the surface.
Taiwan has been focusing more on making its own weapons and not depending as much on buying them from other countries. They want to update their military and be able to defend themselves without relying on other countries.
Tsai became the leader of Taiwan when the country was having difficulties convincing the United States and European countries to sell them expensive military equipment.
In recent years, Beijing has been putting more pressure on Taipei and the United States. This includes diplomatic, economic, and military actions. The United States, under both President Joe Biden and his predecessor Donald Trump, has approved many big military sales.
But Taiwan’s own military buying plan continues to be an important part of its defense strategy, especially when it comes to weapons like anti-ship missiles that could protect against a possible attack.
In March, CNN went to see a company in Taiwan that makes weapons for the military. The company showed off five new types of drones that they built, which can watch and attack from the air.
Taiwan has successfully built its first submarine. This is important because it could help ease worries about Taiwan’s military readiness, especially as China tries to claim its territory. Taiwan is a democratic island with 23. 5 million people
The Communist Party in China sees Taiwan as their territory, even though they have never governed it. Beijing has always stated that they want to merge the island with mainland China, even if they have to use force. However, the Taiwanese government strongly disagrees with China’s claims to the island.
During Xi Jinping’s leadership, China has increased pressure on Taiwan.
In the past few years, Chinese fighter planes, bombers, and surveillance planes have been flying more and more around the island. Chinese warships have also been crossing the unofficial boundary line in the Taiwan Strait more often.
Last year, China’s military organized big exercises to show their disagreement with a trip that Nancy Pelosi, who was then the House Speaker, made to Taiwan.
During a meeting, Admiral Huang mentioned that Taiwan tried to create a new group of submarines when former president Lee Teng-hui started a special team in 1995. However, they had trouble because the US didn’t want to sell submarines to Taiwan.
The project officially started in 2016, when Tsai became the leader.
He explained that there were many difficulties in making Taiwan’s first submarine because there wasn’t enough money, there were delays because there weren’t enough computer chips available worldwide, and they were worried about China spying on them.
The project had 1,003 people from Taiwan working on it. Most of them helped create the submarine’s design, explained Huang. All the employees were being watched by the military security team to make sure that no secrets were revealed.
Huang mentioned that he was given a budget of $1. 54 billion (NT$4936 billion) to construct the initial ship. Around 60% of the money was used to buy things from other countries and military gear, but he thought that number would go down in the future as Taiwan’s own submarine building industry gets better.
He didn’t want to say which countries gave permission for Taiwan to export things. But he did say that he talked to important military leaders in the US Pacific Fleet, Japan, South Korea, and India.
Once the submarine was revealed, it will go into trials in the ocean next month before it starts working next year. -
Taiwan is not part of China and not for sale – Foreign Minister tells Elon Musk
Elon Musk’s statement that Taiwan is part of China has been met with Taiwan firmly asserting that it is “not for sale.”
“Listen up, Taiwan is not part of the PRC [People’s Republic of China] & certainly not for sale!,” foreign minister Joseph Wu said on Mr Musk’s X.
During a business summit this week, Elon Musk made a controversial comparison, likening Taiwan to Hawaii and describing it as an “integral part” of China.
This statement further strained relations between Beijing and Taipei, as China claims sovereignty over self-governed Taiwan. Tensions in the region have escalated in the past year, with China frequently conducting military drills around the island.
In response to these drills, Taiwan reported detecting over 40 Chinese military aircraft and around 10 ships in its waters.
Elon Musk’s comments are not the first to provoke Taiwan’s government. In October, he suggested a potential solution to the Beijing-Taipei tensions by proposing that China be granted some level of control over Taiwan.
This proposal was met with criticism from Taiwanese officials, who reiterated their commitment to freedom and sovereignty.
It’s worth noting that Elon Musk has business interests in China, which adds a layer of complexity to his statements on Taiwan.
Mr Wu also posted on X: “Hope Elon Musk can also ask the CCP [Chinese Community Party] to open X to its people.” Mr Musk’s micro-blogging platform X, formerly known as Twitter, is banned in China.
Mr Wu had previously said that China’s military drills were intended to influence Taiwan’s elections in January.
“The PRC [People’s Republic of China] has made it clear it wants to shape Taiwan’s coming national election. Well, it’s up to our citizens to decide, not the bully next door,” he wrote on X.
Elon Musk’s electric vehicle company, Tesla, operates a substantial manufacturing facility in Shanghai, China.
During his most recent visit to China in May, Musk held meetings with senior Chinese officials, and the Chinese Foreign Ministry confirmed that Tesla was interested in expanding its operations within the country.
Musk’s visit garnered significant attention due to the strained relations between the United States and China in recent years. Although the two nations have resumed high-level discussions, they continue to have disagreements on various matters, with Taiwan being a prominent point of contention.
Taiwan has become a major source of tension between the two nations, as the United States has long been a key ally of Taipei.
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Taiwan election: Netflix actress chosen as Terry Gou’s running mate by Foxconn founder
Terry Gou, the founder of Foxconn, has picked Tammy Lai, an actress, to be his partner in the presidential election in Taiwan.
Many people were surprised by today’s announcement because Ms. Lai doesn’t have any experience in politics.
Mr Gou is running as a candidate by himself after not being chosen by the main opposing party, Kuomintang.
Taiwan has been a country that is governed by the people since 1996. China is very important in this situation because it says the island belongs to them and they might use force to bring it under their control.
Mr Gou, who supports China, is not doing as well as William Lai, Ko Wen-je, and Hou Yu-ih in various surveys.
Ms Lai, who is 60 years old, has been working in the entertainment industry for many years. She acted as a presidential candidate, a character that seemed to be based on President Tsai Ing-wen, on the show Wave Makers on Netflix. Earlier this year, the series led to the emergence of a Me too movement in Taiwan.
However, according to a local magazine called Business Today, he had already left the island before she was born.
Mr Gou has been trying to convince voters by talking about his achievements in business and his past work with China. He founded Foxconn in 1974 and now it is a major supplier for Apple.
Ms Lai said she had an open mind. After spending some time with Mr. Gou, I have realized that I can work well with him because he is very fascinating.
People are wondering about Ms. Lai’s nationality because laws in Taiwan say that people who want to be president can only have one nationality. A spokesperson said that Ms. Lai will respond to the question on her own later.
Dennis Weng, a professor at Sam Houston State University in the US, said it was a smart decision for Mr Gou. However, it may not have a big impact on the outcome of the January election in the end.
Tammy Lai did really well in Wave Makers, and lots of young people were in the audience. “He said that young people don’t like Terry Gou,” he told the BBC in Chinese. -
China presents ‘blueprint’ for integrating Taiwan
China presented a plan to strengthen connections between the province of Fujian and Taiwan. They highlighted the advantages of working together and demonstrated their military power by sending warships near Taiwan.
The Chinese Communist Party and the State Council have issued a directive stating that they want to develop Fujian as a place where Taiwan and China can work together, and where Taiwanese people and businesses can live and work in China.
Chinese experts, mentioned in state media, are praising a document that is seen as a plan for Taiwan’s future development. This is happening at a time when relations between Taiwan and China are tense due to Taiwan’s upcoming presidential election in January.
China is increasing its military pressure on Taiwan, a country with 24 million people and a democratic system. China’s ruling Communist Party says Taiwan belongs to China, even though they have never had control over it.
Taiwanese authorities have noticed that a Chinese aircraft carrier and about twenty Chinese warships have gathered near Taiwan’s waters. This happened just before Beijing is set to reveal its integration plan.
China has, for a long time, used both rewards and punishments as a way to deal with Taiwan. They threaten Taiwan with the possibility of a military attack, but also give them chances for economic and cultural exchanges if they agree with China’s opinions.
Because there has been a significant deterioration in the relationship between Taiwan and China in recent years, it is uncertain how open people in Taiwan will be to China’s broad suggestion.
On Wednesday, Wang Ting-yu, a politician from Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party, said the integration plan was “absurd. ”
In a video message, Wang said that China needs to focus on dealing with its financial problems instead of trying to push its agenda against Taiwan through government-related efforts.
The idea of developing Fujian along with Taiwan was mentioned in a Chinese document in 2021, but no specific information was given.
In June, a top Chinese leader suggested a plan to join Taiwan with China. The Mainland Affairs Council in Taiwan responded by calling the proposal pointless and unsuccessful. They said it did not meet the expectations of the people in Taiwan and made Taiwan feel insignificant.
CNN has contacted Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council to ask for their statement or response.
In the directive, Beijing promises to make the business environment better for Taiwanese companies in Fujian. They also want to strengthen cooperation in industries and investments, and encourage Taiwanese companies to join Chinese stock exchanges.
For the first time ever, companies from Taiwan can invest in and create radio and TV production companies in Fujian as part of a trial program.
The directive also aims to encourage people from Taiwan to come and live in Fujian. It promises to improve programs that help the people of Taiwan live and work in the province, like buying property. It also promises fair treatment for Taiwanese students who want to go to public schools.
Chinese experts noted that the document is like a plan for the future of Taiwan, and by working with Fujian, Taiwan can have more opportunities and grow even more. This was reported by the state-run Global Times.
Fujian is a province with 40 million people located on the side of Taiwan Strait. It is the province that is nearest to Taiwan, both in terms of geography and culture.
Many people in Taiwan are descendants of Chinese immigrants from the Fujian province who came in large groups over many years. They brought with them their language, customs, and religion, which became the foundation of Taiwan’s traditional culture among the majority Han population.
China’s ruling Communist Party has always tried to use the fact that Fujian and Taiwan are close geographically, historically, and culturally as a reason to become more economically and socially connected, and eventually unite, with Taiwan.
Beijing is trying to bring together Taiwan’s outlying islands of Kinmen and Matsu with the mainland. These islands are closer to Fujian than Taiwan and have a strong historical connection with the mainland.
In a directive on Tuesday, Beijing promised to make the integration between the city of Xiamen and Kinmen even faster. These two cities are very close to each other, only a few miles apart.
It promises to work together on building things like roads and buildings between the two cities. This will make it possible to move electricity and gas from Xiamen to Kinmen. They also want to connect the two cities with a bridge. People living in Kinmen will be treated the same as people living in Xiamen, according to the plan.
They have also introduced similar integration plans for the cities of Fuzhou and Matsu.
Some people who live in Kinmen may like the idea of making it easier to connect with other places. This year, a group of eight local councilors from Kinmen wanted to build a bridge to Xiamen to improve economic connections. They also wanted Kinmen to become a demilitarized zone and promote peace.
Kinmen is a place that is right in between Taiwan and China. After the Chinese civil war, it experienced many attacks from the Chinese military, like soldiers coming from sea and bombs being shot at it.
The plan of the councilors suggests that they want to take away all the soldiers and military buildings from Taiwan’s islands. They want to change Kinmen into a place where people from Beijing and Taipei can talk and try to reduce tension. -
iPhone CEO’s decision to run for president shakes up Taiwan’s election campaign
A billionaire who made his own wealth and is in his seventies, and has little experience in politics, has decided to join one of the most important presidential elections of 2024. This has caused a big change in the race, which could have significant effects even outside the country.
Terry Gou, the person who started the biggest company that makes iPhones called Foxconn, said on Monday that he wants to be the president of Taiwan again. A lot of other people who like China are already running for president, but Terry Gou wants to challenge the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), who want Taiwan to be separate from China.
Tsai Ing-wen is the current president, but she can’t run for another term because there is a limit. The DPP has been in power for eight years under her leadership. If the party wins for a third time, it would be something that has never happened before in the 27 years of democracy on the island.
The upcoming election, scheduled for January, is happening at a tense time between Taiwan, an island with 24 million people, and China, a powerful neighboring country. China believes that Taiwan is its rightful territory and is willing to use force if needed to take control.
Tensions are very high between China and an island because China’s leader, Xi Jinping, is sending more and more warships and fighter jets to the island, making people worried.
Many people are increasingly worried about the possibility of China attacking another country, especially after Russia invaded Ukraine. Despite this, China has refused to criticize Russia and has actually become closer to them.
There hasn’t been such a big possibility of a conflict during a Taiwan election since 1996. Back then, China shot missiles at Taiwan to scare voters from supporting a candidate who wanted Taiwan to be separate from China. That decision ended up going very wrong, but the candidate still won.
With the increasing possibility of an invasion, Taiwan’s foreign policy, particularly its relationship with China, has become a major concern in the presidential race. This is in addition to other important topics like the economy and the rising cost of living.
Candidates who are against the ruling party, including Gou, criticize the DPP for causing problems with Beijing and increasing disagreements. They say that this election is a decision between wanting conflict or wanting harmony.
Meanwhile, the DPP’s candidate, Vice President Lai Ching-te, has described the election as a decision between a government that values people’s freedom and a government That is run by a single ruler with strict control over everything.
Don’t let fear or the higher risk of authoritarianism make you give up or go backwards. He said that we have to be brave and strong in order to keep developing Taiwan’s democracy. He said this while he was traveling through the United States last month, even though Beijing criticized the trip.
Lai is a politician who used to be a doctor and went to Harvard. He belongs to a group in the DPP called “deep green,” which supports independence more openly.This has made him a problem for Beijing, who often criticized him as a “separatist” and “troublemaker. ” In 2017, Lai angered Chinese officials by describing himself as someone who works practically towards Taiwan’s independence.
Since Lai became the DPP nominee, he has changed his opinions and now supports maintaining the current state of relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait. This choice has been favored by most people according to opinion polls, although the younger generation on the island is increasingly supporting complete freedom from China.
Gou needs to gather around 290,000 signatures by November so he can be a candidate on the ballot. In the past few months, he has organized events similar to political campaigns all over Taiwan to gain support for his bid.
His campaign is focused on one main idea: in order to prevent a war with China, the DPP needs to be removed from power.
Gou is proud of his many years of experience in dealing with Chinese officials. He believes that Taiwan should follow a “one-China framework” and begin discussions with Beijing right away.
He became successful in his business because there was improvement in the relationship between Taiwan and China.
Foxconn started its first factory in Shenzhen in 1988. It has been really important for China’s changes and growth because it brought new businesses, money, and technology to China’s young economy. The big electronics company now has large factories that hire many people in different parts of China.
Gou’s successful business empire in Taiwan has made him extremely wealthy, with a net worth of approximately US$7 billion. This has also boosted his confidence to make significant commitments.
Gou announced on Monday that he plans to run for office. He promises to make Taiwan’s economy grow faster and avoid the same problems as Ukraine.
“He said that if you give me four years, I guarantee to bring 50 years of peace to the Taiwan Strait. ”
This is a strong statement to make, especially for a businessman who has previously had good relations with China’s ruling Communist Party. Gou is the only person who has met and greeted Xi by shaking hands. In 2014, the Chinese leader welcomed him at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse when he visited Beijing.
However, some people think that because Foxconn has invested a lot of money in China, Gou may be influenced by China’s demands. Gou has strongly denied this idea.
Gou said that if the Chinese Communist Party threatened to take away Foxconn’s assets if people didn’t obey them, he would agree with them and ask them to go ahead and do it.
He quit being the leader of Foxconn in 2019 to concentrate on attempting to become president, but gave up when he didn’t receive the nomination from Kuomintang (KMT), Taiwan’s main opposing party.
After the KMT rejected Gou for the second time this year, he has decided to participate in the election as an independent candidate. This has caused conflict among the opposition, as there are already two candidates who support having stronger and more stable relations with Beijing.
Hou Yu-ih, the mayor of New Taipei City, is the selected candidate of the KMT political party. Ko Wen-je, a popular ex-mayor of Taipei, is participating in the election under the Taiwan People’s Party.
The KMT is very sorry about Gou’s bid and wants him to support Hou. They are worried that if Gou runs, it will divide the votes of people who are friendly to Beijing.
However, Gou has supported his choice by portraying himself as the only person capable of bringing together the divided opposition against Lai, who is currently ahead in the polls.
“I want to bring together the opposition group,” he said on Monday, asking Hou and Ko to meet and talk about the best plan to beat DPP.
According to Wen-Ti Sung, a political scientist from the Taiwan Studies Program at Australia National University, in the near future, Gou is expected to split the votes of opposing parties which will make things easier for Lai.
Sung warned that it is difficult to predict the long-term effects.
Gou’s dream is to make the other two opponents either quit or support him, so he can be the only person challenging Lai. However, very few experts in Taiwan think that this is a realistic idea.
After Gou announced his decision, Hou, the KMT candidate, told reporters that he still wants to be president and is focused on doing what the party wants him to do.
Ko’s party said it understands that Gou has the right to run for office, but they are focusing on Ko’s campaign.
Apart from getting 290,000 votes by November, Gou also has to announce his running mate before September 17, as per Taiwan’s Central Election Commission rules.
“Gou is in a hurry, and time is not on his side,” Sung explained. -
Taiwan’s president to travel to Eswatini
Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen will visit Eswatini, its only African ally, next month to strengthen their relationship.
During the visit, she will go to parties to celebrate the country’s independence day and King Mswati III’s birthday.
She will go on a trip from 5th to 7th September, which is also the 55th anniversary of the countries’ friendship.
China says that Taiwan belongs to them and should not be allowed to have relationships with other countries as an independent state. It only has official connections with 13 countries, including Eswatini.
Taiwan’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Roy Lee, said that the Taiwanese president’s visit to South Africa is not meant to rival Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to the same country this week.
Ms Tsai went to Eswatini in 2018. This is the only African country that still talks diplomatically with the Asian island, while Burkina Faso changed to China’s side in May 2018. -
Taiwan won’t be deterred by China’s threats – William Lai
Taiwan’s vice president and potential presidential candidate declared on Sunday while travelling through the United States that his country will never capitulate in the face of escalating Chinese threats, contradicting Beijing’s criticism of his visit.
William Lai, a front-runner in the Taiwanese presidential election in January, stopped in New York on his way to Paraguay, where he will be present for the country’s new president’s inauguration on Tuesday.
Only 13 nations, including this one from South America, have formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a self-governing democracy that China’s ruling Communist Party claims as its own despite never having had any kind of control over it.
Lai framed Taiwan’s long-term survival as something the world community should be concerned about in an address to supporters at a luncheon banquet in New York.
“When Taiwan is safe, the world is safe, and when there is peace on the Taiwan Strait, there will be world peace,” Lai reportedly remarked, according to Taiwan’s presidential office.
“No matter how great the threat of authoritarianism is to Taiwan, we absolutely will not be scared nor cower, and we will uphold the values of democracy and freedom.”
Lai made his remarks after the Chinese foreign ministry denounced his visit and referred to him as a “trouble maker through and through.”
China, it was stated, vehemently opposes any official contact between the US and Taiwan as well as any “‘Taiwan independence’ separatists to the US.”
Lai’s transits, which include a stop in San Francisco on his way back on Wednesday, have been described as usual by both Taiwan and the US.
A senior administration source told CNN on July 16 that such transits were “fairly common” and that they were “unofficial, in keeping with our US One China policy.”
In January 2022, Lai last travelled via the US.
Lai, 63, is a member of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which is in power, and is noted for being more overtly pro-independence. This group is known as the “deep green” camp.
Former physician turned politician with a Harvard education has described himself in the past as a “pragmatic worker for Taiwanese independence.”
Beijing, which has not renounced the use of force to capture the self-governing island, has grown particularly hostile to him as a result.
But after obtaining the DPP nomination, Lai has changed his stance on China.
Beijing has increased economic, diplomatic, and military pressure on Taiwan under the direction of Xi Jinping, particularly in the wake of President Tsai Ing-wen’s 2016 victory and subsequent election to a second term in office in 2020.
Tsai is ineligible to run for a third term under Taiwan’s constitution.
In January, Taiwan will hold elections that might have a significant impact on world relations at a time when Xi’s potential to fulfil his promise to “reunite” the island with China is being closely watched.
The Kuomintang, a political group that was originally the Chinese Communist Party’s fiercest foe but has subsequently changed to support far closer ties with Beijing, is the DPP’s historical rival.
Since the US and the government of Taiwan do not have formal diplomatic relations, travel by Taiwanese officials to the US is referred to as “transits” rather than “visits” because the stopovers are part of an unofficial trip en route to another location.
Despite Beijing’s warnings and threats, Taiwan’s President Tsai visited California in March and spoke with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. China began three days of live-fire military drills surrounding Taiwan after Tsai’s tour.
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Taiwan’s biggest airport used as battlefield to mock Chinese invasion
On Wednesday, the island’s military conducted an anti-takeover drill at Taoyuan International Airport in Taiwan for the first time ever in an effort to fend off any prospective attack from Beijing.
The exercise was designed to test the Taiwanese military’s capacity to cooperate across branches and handle problems during a made-up Chinese invasion, according to a previous statement from the Ministry of National Defence.
The exercise at Taiwan‘s busiest international entry point, which included soldiers on the runway and military helicopters in the sky, demonstrates how Taipei is preparing for a variety of contingencies in the face of concerns about China’s escalating military intimidation, which concerns have grown since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began last year.
Taiwan is a self-governing democracy that China’s ruling Communist Party claims as its territory despite never having had control of it. Taiwan has been the target of years of diplomatic isolation by China.
Beijing has not ruled out using force to annex Taiwan, and it has been applying increasing amounts of military pressure on Taipei by sending aircraft into its own self-declared air defence identification zone and by stationing warships in the waterways surrounding the island.
Airports are prime targets, as Moscow’s ultimately fruitless attempt to seize Kyiv’s Hostomel Airport during the initial phases of their invasion last year plainly shown.
Wearing red helmets to symbolise imaginary infiltrators, Taoyuan military personnel and airport police on Wednesday engaged in a gunfire practise. Additionally, firefighters practised extinguishing fictitious fires.
As they flew over the airport, military helicopters staged the deployment of enemy soldiers on the runway. As they moved closer to an airport facility, they engaged in gunfire with the Taiwanese soldiers guarding the location as well as those who were hiding under homemade covers.
The drills, which lasted 30 minutes, came to an end as the Taiwanese military practised routing any hostile forces that were still there and raising the Taiwan flag to indicate their imaginary successful defence of the airport.
The airport drill was recently included to the Han Kuang military exercise, which has been staged yearly since 1984 and involves all military branches in Taiwan, including the reserve forces, in an effort to improve overall defence capabilities.
Aircraft landing and taking off were momentarily barred during the exercise due to airspace management procedures, a Taoyuan International Airport spokeswoman told CNN.
The airport rescheduled eight flights, but there was “no major impact” on travellers, the official continued.
As Typhoon Doksuri made landfall in the northern Philippines on Wednesday, Taiwan’s military suspended some of its Han Kuang drills.
According to the island’s Central Weather Bureau, the storm’s outer bands are already having an effect on eastern Taiwan and are expected to continue moving towards the island and China over the next few days.
The Ministry of National Defence stated in a statement on Monday that Taiwan’s Air Force opted to cancel the drills at Taitung’s Fengnian airport on its eastern beaches on Tuesday owing to “safety concerns” as the storm neared.
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Taiwan police being probed after failed sting operation results in sexual assault of juvenile
Following a bungled sting operation that resulted in a youngster being sexually abused, two Taiwanese police officers are being looked into. This has caused outrage in the community and a formal apologies from the local police department.
According to a court decision made earlier this month that sparked an investigation into police behaviour, the event started in November 2020 when an anonymous 13-year-old girl met a man, Chang Ming-hsin, via a dating app.
The court found that Chang offered the girl 5,000 New Taiwan dollars (about $160) in exchange for her consent to have sex with him in exchange for nude images. They made plans to meet up at a hotel a few days later, but when the girl failed to show up, Chang threatened to post her pornographic images online.
According to the verdict, she then reported the incident to the Zhongli Precinct of the Taoyuan Police Department in Taoyuan city, which is located not far from Taipei. The decision revealed that the police set up a sting operation in which the girl agreed to meet with Chang under the false pretence of having sex with him.
The girl was with a guardian when she reported the incident, gave a statement to police, and when the operation was conducted, a precinct spokesperson said last week. According to the spokeswoman, the guardian had consented to the sting operation.
Two police officers were on the scene to keep an eye on the meeting when the girl encountered Chang during the operation and requested him to get out of the car. He continually ordered her to get in, however, and took the young woman to a parking place between 200 and 300 metres (656 to 984 feet) away.
The verdict stated that she consented to Chang’s request to engage in oral sex with him out of fear.
Chang then drove the girl back to the restaurant, where he was apprehended by authorities. Chang’s case came to a conclusion on July 13 when the Taoyuan District Court sentenced him to eight years in prison for three counts of sexual offences, including pressuring a kid to commit obscene activities and transactional sex.
However, the police’s participation in the failed sting has drawn more criticism and attention from around the world.
The girl had been told by police not to get into Chang’s car, and when she did, the police officers there tried to chase after the car, but they were “not fast enough” to stop it, according to Focus Taiwan, an offshoot of Taiwan’s official Central News Agency.
Focus Taiwan reports that the girl allegedly did not mention the attack during the subsequent police and prosecutor investigations, only revealing it after Chang’s court case.
However, a representative of the Taoyuan Police Department, which is in charge of the police precinct, issued a video statement on Saturday in which they expressed regret for their carelessness about the girl’s personal safety and the damage they had done to her.
The district prosecutor’s office has been tasked with investigating the two cops who participated in the sting operation for alleged negligence and failing to perform their duties, according to the spokesperson. They have since been reassigned and given demerits in order to only undertake administrative police duties.
According to the spokesperson, two additional police officers who were in charge of the operation also earned demerits due to the harm done to the reputation of the police force.
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Three-day military display by China causes more problems for Taiwan
This week, the Chinese military has increased its activities in the area of Taiwan, flying scores of warplanes over the Taiwan Strait’s middle line and into the main areas of the island’s air defence identification zone (ADIZ).
Analysts claim that while the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) activities has a number of ramifications, none of them are good for Taiwan or the stability across the Taiwan Strait.
38 PLA aircraft were spotted in the area of the island in the 24 hours ending at 6 a.m. local time on Wednesday, 33 in the same period on Thursday, and 30 in the same period on Friday, according to data from Taiwan’s Defence Ministry.
Over those 72 hours, 73 PLA aircraft either crossed the strait’s median line – an informal demarcation point that Beijing does not recognize but until recently largely respected – or entered the southeastern or southwestern parts of the island’s ADIZ.
China’s ruling Communist Party claims the self-governing democracy of Taiwan as its territory despite never having controlled it, and has spent decades trying to isolate it diplomatically. Beijing has not ruled out using force to take control of the island.
The PLA aircraft detected this week included fighter jets, H-6 bombers, anti-submarine warning aircraft and reconnaissance drones, Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said.
The ministry said it tasked combat air patrol warplanes, naval vessels and land-based missile defense to monitor the PLA aircraft, along with nine Chinese warships that were present around the island.
Their response underscores the problem that increased PLA activity poses to Taiwan, said Carl Schuster, a Hawaii-based analyst and former director of operations at the US Pacific Command’s Joint Intelligence Center.
When Taiwan’s military responds to PLA operations, it taxes the island’s systems and equipment.
“Constant use creates a maintenance headache that reduces readiness until (spare) parts are delivered and installed,” he said. “Also, air frames and hulls require inspection and refurbishment as certain age and stress times are reached.”
He also says surges in PLA activity are aimed at wearing down the mental ability of Taiwan’s people to resist a potentialtakeoverby Beijing.
“Beijing hopes Taipei will just accept unification as inevitable and allow Chinese forces in without resistance. They are trying to diminish if not destroy the Taiwan population’s will to resist,” he said.
But even if that tactic does not work, the continued presence of large numbers of PLA warplanes and ships around Taiwan can lull the island’s defenders – both the Taiwanese military and any potential external reinforcements – into complacency, he said.
Under the Taiwan Relations Act, Washington has agreed to give Taiwan the ability to defend itself, largely through weapons sales, although President Joe Biden has said repeatedly that US troops would defend the island in the event of a Chinese invasion.
Either way, with US equipment or even fighting troops, it may become too late for Washington to come to Taipei’s rescue if large amounts of PLA planes and ships are already on station around the island.
“The longer the delay in reacting to PLA buildups, the less time available to match or counter that buildup. The US margin of advantage is too slim to achieve success if its forces move too late,” Schuster said.
From the PLA’s perspective, sustained drills are a necessary part of readiness to execute any move on Taiwan, the former US Navy captain said.
“PLA forces need constant training since such skills are perishable and exercises offer both training in those skills and opportunities to rehearse and examine some aspects of war plans,” he said.
“Military operations are complex, like American football. The plays and drives require constant practice and rehearsal to be conducted effectively,” Schuster added.
China last held three days of intensive military drills around Taiwan in April, exercises the PLA said “comprehensively tested joint combat capabilities of its integrated military forces under actual combat situation.”
“Forces in the command is ready for combat at all times, and will resolutely destroy any type of ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist or foreign interference attempts,” a PLA statement after the April drills said, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
As for this week’s drills, a report in the state-run Global Times said they “aim to safeguard national sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity.”
“Such drills are becoming more combat-oriented and more intensive in order to deter and prepare for interferences from external forces,” the report said, citing Chinese experts.
Meanwhile, the activity in and around the Taiwan Strait in the past few days hasn’t been limited to the PLA.
A US Navy P-8A reconnaissance jet transited the strait on Thursday, according to a statement from the US 7th Fleet in Japan.
“The aircraft’s transit of the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the United States’ commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific. The United States military flies, sails and operates anywhere international law allows,” the statement said.
On its English-language website, the PLA accused the US military of hyping the situation, and a spokesperson for the Eastern Theater Command said PLA troops tracked and monitored the US plane.
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin told CNN Thursday that he doesn’t see confrontation between the US and China involving Taiwan as “imminent” or “unavoidable.”
“But having said that it’s my job to make sure that we have to continue to maintain a credible deterrence in the Indo-Pacific,” he said. “The most credible deterrent is a combat capable force and that’s what we have today.”
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Messi detained at Chinese airport over wrong travel documents
Over the weekend, Lionel Messi encountered an issue with Chinese border control due to carrying an incorrect passport.The 35-year-old football star arrived in Beijing on Saturday to join his national team for upcoming friendly matches against Australia and Indonesia.
Messi, who traveled via a private jet accompanied by his close friend Angel Di Maria, plays for Inter Miami.
While the flight itself proceeded smoothly, border security initially denied Messi entry into China.
He was mobbed by officials and could be seen clutching his passport.
According to Mirror Sports, the issue arose due to Messi travelling with his Spanish passport instead of his Argentinian one.
The 35-year-old is believed to have used his Spanish passport due to thinking Taiwan was part of China, and he was reportedly heard in a video asking the border officials: ‘Is Taiwan not China?’
Airport personnel were confused that he’d not brought his native documents, but after a wait of roughly 30 minutes, Messi was granted an entry visa and continued on his way to the training camp.
As reported by Daily Star, Argentina will play Australia on Thursday, June 15, at Beijing’s Workers’ Stadium before moving on to Jakarta the following Monday to face Indonesia at the Stadion Utama Gelora Bung Karno.
Australia coach wants Messi revenge
Meanwhile, Sports Brief reported that Australia coach, Graham Arnold said on Tuesday that he wants “revenge” over Lionel Messi’s Argentina when his side meet the world champions in a Beijing friendly next week.
Messi terrorised the Socceroos and scored a sublime goal in a 2-1 win in the last 16 at the World Cup in Qatar, before going on to lift the trophy.
But Arnold’s unfancied team gave Argentina a scare and the Australia coach said they will be taking the match on June 15 in the Chinese capital seriously, even if it is a friendly.
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Ukraine war hasn’t affected China’s attitude toward possible Taiwan attack – Report
There is no evidence that Russia’s stumbling invasion of Ukraine has altered Beijing’s perceptions of “the timescale or methodology” for any potential attack on Taiwan, according to a leading strategic think tank, which was released ahead of a regional security summit in Singapore. China continues to be the “leading long-term challenge” to the current international order.
According to a report released on Friday by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), which is holding its annual Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore this weekend, the protracted conflict in Europe may also hasten trends towards increased military spending and efforts to develop military capabilities in the Asia-Pacific region.
The war and its reverberations in the Asia-Pacific region – as well as the growing contest between the United States and China – will be overarching themes at the security summit, the sidelines of which have long provided a platform for top security officials to meet face-to-face.
Attendees are expected to include US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Ukraine’s Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov.
US and Chinese defense chiefs are not expected to meet this year – a mark of the depth of the fracture in relations between the two countries.
Austin on Thursday said it was “unfortunate” China declined a US offer to meet at the conference and warned the ongoing lack of communication could result in “an incident that could very, very quickly spiral out of control.”
Beijing earlier this week refuted the claim it was blocking American defense officials’ efforts to communicate, instead blaming the US for creating “artificial obstacles, seriously undermining mutual trust between the two militaries.”
Concerns from the US and across the region over China’s increasing assertiveness have grown in recent years as Beijing rapidly expanded its navy, militarized islands in the South China Sea, sought to forge security pacts in the South Pacific and ramped up rhetoric around disputed territorial claims.
Those concerns have sharpened over the past year, as Beijing twice staged extensive military drills around the island of Taiwan and refused to condemn Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
That invasion has also drawn increased attention to Taiwan as a potential security flashpoint in Asia.
Despite broad differences with the geopolitical circumstances of Russia and Ukraine, the optics of a seemingly more powerful aggressor launching an attack driven by a vision of unification have heightenedfocus on China’s intentions toward Taiwan.
China’s ruling Communist Party claims the self-governing democracy as its own, despite never having controlled it, and has vowed to unify the island with the mainland, by force if necessary.
The IISS report released Friday, an annual assessment on Asia-Pacific security written by the think tank’s experts, said there is no evidence the war in Ukraine has “altered Chinese thinking on the timescale or methodology” for a possible attack on Taiwan.
“Beijing’s view of Taiwan as an internal challenge has shaped its assessment that a Chinese use of force to regain the island would be utterly dissimilar to the Ukraine war,” the report said.
Chinese military thinkers had, however, analyzed the implications of Western support for Ukraine and the factors that contributed to Russia’s poor military performance, according to the report.
It added that it was “impossible to determine whether China will use force to take Taiwan at some point in the future,” and that Beijing’s decision-making would be shaped not just by “an assessment of military capability but also by a consideration of likely US and allied non-military reactions,” including potential economic impacts.
“There is no evidence that China has a fixed timetable for invading Taiwan,” the report added.
Meanwhile, Beijing’s rhetoric around Taiwan was one of several key triggers accounting for Japan’s growing concern over China, the report said.
China was continuing to develop its “blue-water” capabilities to operate on the high seas far away from its ports, according to the report.
But the efforts of the US and its most important regional allies to increase their naval funding and readiness “could facilitate a shift in the naval balance in their favor,” it said.
The US has made concerted efforts to bolster its security alliances and footprint in the region in recent years in the face of a rising China.
That has included strengthening trilateral cooperation with allies South Korea and Japan and revamping the Quad security grouping with Australia, Japan and India, widely seen as a counter to China’s military rise.
Earlier this year, the US, the United Kingdom and Australia agreed to build a combined fleet of elite nuclear-powered submarines.
However, many regional states prefer to avoid taking sides in the “growing confrontation” between the US and China, the IISS report said, adding there is “no region-wide trend towards alignment with the US,” due to economic dependencies and fear of escalation.
Beijing has repeatedly claimed its People’s Liberation Army is a defensive force meant to safeguard world peace and development – a point China’s defense chief Li is expected to emphasize at the conference, where he will also discuss Beijing’s vision for regional security.
It is Li’s first time attending the conference since stepping into his role as defense minister earlier this year. Li was sanctioned by the US in 2018 over China’s purchase of Russian weapons.
Both he and Austin are scheduled to deliver addresses to the conference, which runs from Friday to Sunday.
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US Defense Secretary warns of devastating Taiwan war, criticizes China at summit
US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin has warned that a war over Taiwan would be “devastating” and have an impact on the world economy “in ways we cannot imagine.” Austin also reaffirmed US support for the island democracy.
“Conflict is not inevitable nor imminent. Austin made his statements at the Shangri-La Dialogue security meeting on Saturday, which is being attended by delegates from dozens of nations, including China. “Deterrence is strong today – and it’s our job to keep it that way,” Austin added.
“Maintaining tranquilly and stability in the Taiwan Strait is important for the entire world. It is necessary for the safety of global supply chains and commercial shipping routes. Additionally, the freedom of navigation everywhere. There is little doubt that a confrontation in the Taiwan Strait would be catastrophic.
In a question and answer session after his speech, Austin added: “Conflict in the Taiwan Strait would affect the global economy in ways we cannot imagine.”
China’s ruling Communist Party claims Taiwan as part of its territory, despite never having controlled it, and its increasingly frequent military exercises near to and around the island have raised concerns about how far it will go to realize that claim. China’s leader Xi Jinping has pointedly not ruled out the use of force.
Shortly after Austin spoke on Saturday, Chinese People’s Liberation Army Lieutenant General Jing Jianfeng told China’s state broadcaster CCTV that the US defense chief’s comments on Taiwan were “completely wrong.”
Jing accused Washington of trying to “consolidate hegemony and provoke confrontation,” adding that US actions were damaging regional peace and stability.
Late Saturday afternoon, a US Navy spokesperson said US and Canadian warships were sailing through the Taiwan Strait while the discussions were going on in Singapore.
The transit by the destroyer USS Chung-Hoon and frigate HIMCS Montreal was routine and occurred “through waters where high-seas freedoms of navigation and overflight apply in accordance with international law,” US Navy spokesperson Lt. Kristina Wiedemann said in a statement.
“Cooperation like this represents the centerpiece of our approach to a secure and prosperous region where aircraft and ships of all nations may fly, sail and operate anywhere international law allows,” the statement added.
Austin’s comments earlier came at a tense time for relations between the US and China, as China recently rejected an offer from Austin to meet at the summit in Singapore, citing US sanctions on Chinese officials and companies.
Austin addressed the lack of communication in his speech on Saturday, saying that he is “deeply concerned” that the People’s Republic of China “has been unwilling to engage more seriously on better mechanisms for crisis management.”
“For responsible leaders, the right time to talk is anytime. The right time to talk is every time. And the right time to talk is now,” Austin said. “Dialogue is not a reward. It is a necessity.”
Austin noted that he and Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu greeted each other with a smile at a banquet Friday night, but called on Beijing to do more.
“A cordial handshake over dinner is no substitute for serious engagement,” he said.
Throughout his speech, Austin listed off ways that the US is partnering with allies in the region, saying that those partnerships are bringing the region closer and making it “more stable and resilient.”
Austin reaffirmed that the US will “continue to stand by our allies and partners as they uphold their rights,” and maintain “our vigorous, responsible presence across the Indo-Pacific.”
Criticizing China for its “alarming number of risky intercepts of US and allied aircraft” in international airspace, Austin added that the US would support allies and partners against “coercion and bullying.”
“We do not seek conflict or confrontation,” Austin said. “But we will not flinch in the face of bullying or coercion.”
Austin reaffirmed US readiness in the region.
“The way that you deter any misguided decisions is by having a combat-credible military,” he said in answer to a question, adding that the US “will be ready no matter what happens.”
Drew Thompson, a senior research fellow at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore, said Austin laid out a “positive and inclusive” vision for the region, adding that it is a vision that has benefited Beijing for decades.
The next move will be Beijing’s. Defense Minister Li addresses the Shangri-La forum on Sunday morning.
“It will be interesting to see how General Li responds tomorrow,” Thompson said.
“In many ways the door is open for China to engage cooperatively with the US and other countries in the region to contribute to stability,” he said.
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China opposes new trade deal between the US and Taiwan
Less than a year after the start of negotiations, the United States and Taiwan agreed on the first stage of a bilateral trade initiative on Thursday. This action highlighted the growing closeness of the two countries.
It will be the first formal trade pact between Taiwan and the United States since US President Joe Biden took office in 2021. The new plan, known as the US-Taiwan plan of 21st Century Trade, was presented in June of last year.
According to a statement from the US Trade Representative (USTR) Office, it covers topics such as trade facilitation, regulatory practises, domestic regulation of services, anti-corruption, and aiding small and medium-sized firms.
However, it does not cover tariffs.
“This accomplishment represents an important step forward in strengthening the US-Taiwan economic relationship,” US Trade Representative Katherine Tai said in the statement.
“It demonstrates how we can work together and advance mutual trade priorities on behalf of our people. We look forward to continuing these negotiations and finalizing a robust and high-standard trade agreement that tackles pressing 21st century economic challenges,” she added.
The US Trade Representative Office said discussions will soon begin to finalize the remaining seven areas of the deal: agriculture, labor, environment, standards, state-owned enterprises, digital trade, and non-market policies and practices.
It added that a signing ceremony will be held “in the coming weeks.”
Experts say the move is particularly significant for Taiwan because it is the island democracy’s first official trade agreement since it was excluded from the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) launched by Biden last year.
The IPEF, made up of 14 member states including Japan, Singapore and the Philippines, is not a trade agreement in the traditional sense. It includes one “pillar” related to trade, but has other aims too, including making supply chains more resilient, promoting clean energy and combating corruption.
Kristy Hsu, a director of the Taiwan ASEAN Studies Center at the Chung-Hua Institution of Economic Research, said the US-Taiwan agreement would “create a more efficient and transparent business environment for companies from the two sides.”
“It proves to the international world that if Taiwan is able to engage in such a high-quality initiative with the US, that means our commitment to transparency and trade facilitation should have no question,” she said.
Taiwan, population around 24 million, is currently the world’s 21st largest economy. It plays a crucial role in global supply chains due to its leading role in producing semiconductor chips, vital components in everything from smartphones to computers.
One of its firms – Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) – is particularly important. It is the world’s largest contract manufacturer of chips and plays a critical role in powering products designed by tech companies like Apple, Qualcomm and Nvidia.
Worth nearly $500 billion, TSMC is one of Asia’s most valuable companies, and accounts for 90% of the world’s super-advanced chips.
The strengthening US-Taiwan relationship comes as the self-governing island comes under increasing pressure from mainland China, whose ruling Communist Party claims sovereignty over Taiwan despite never having controlled it.
Consequently, Taiwan has emerged as one of the central issues between China and the United States. The US has shown its support for Taiwan recently by increasing weapons sales to the island, but experts say trade pacts can also play a key role in elevating Taiwan’s international standing.
“It very much sends a signal of recognition that Taiwan is an important ally to the United States,” said J. Michael Cole, a Taipei-based senior adviser with the International Republican Institute.
“Taking the lead in signing a trade agreement with Taiwan and bolstering its economy also sets the tone for other countries to potentially explore the possibility of signing their own agreements with Taiwan as well,” he added.
Hsu, the economist at the Chung-Hua Institution, said the latest agreement could create momentum in the US-Taiwan economic relationship.
“The harmonization of trade rules and regulations mean customs procedures and efficiency may be improved, and that may help save money and time for exporters,” she said.
While the present agreement does not include any reduction in tariffs, Taiwan’s trade representative John Deng said last year that it could be a precursor to a free-trade agreement.
The development also comes amid efforts by Taiwan to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), a major free-trade agreement that came into force in 2018.
The CPTPP comprises of 11 founding members: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, New Zealand, Singapore and Vietnam. In March, Britain also reached an agreement to join the free trade bloc.
In 2021, Taiwan applied to join the CPTPP, but its request is still under consideration. China has also submitted an application to join.
Analysts say the US-Taiwan trade agreement could boost Taiwan’s hopes of joining the CPTPP, even if some members are reluctant to include it due to fears of angering Beijing.
“This trade initiative (between US and Taiwan) actually covers most of the chapters under the CPTPP,” Hsu said. “It will help Taiwan to accelerate our regulatory reform for our efforts toward joining the CPTPP.”
Some analysts expect China to protest the US-Taiwan deal, which it opposed when the first round of negotiations began last year.
“The attempt to play the ‘Taiwan card’ and prevent China’s unification and national rejuvenation will not succeed,” the spokesman of China’s Taiwan Affairs Office Ma Xiaoguang said last August.
Hsu also cautioned that reaching a consensus in the remaining seven areas of the US-Taiwan trade initiative could be more challenging as it may require Taiwan to make concessions that could be controversial domestically.
In 2020, lawmakers in Taiwan threw pig intestines in parliament to protest a proposal to ease restrictions on pork imports from the US. Opponents said the move would allow imports of pork containing ractopamine, an animal feed additive common in the US. The proposal was later passed in a referendum.
“There will be some challenges in the remaining seven chapters,” Hsu said.
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Taiwan activist legally detained for alleged Chinese “secession”
More than eight months after being detained amid heightened tensions across the Taiwan Strait, a political activist from Taiwan has officially been taken into custody on suspicion of “secession” in China.
Last August, just hours after former US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi concluded her crucial trip to Taipei, Yang Chih-yuan, a lawmaker and democracy advocate, was seized by Chinese state security in Wenzhou, Zhejiang province.
The visit enraged Beijing, which responded by holding days of extensive military maneuvers and launching missiles over the autonomous island, raising tensions to their worst level in decades.
Yang’s fate remained unknown for months.
But on Tuesday, China’s Supreme People’s Procuratorate announced on social media that prosecutors in Wenzhou had approved the arrest of Yang on secession charges, after the city’s state security bureau concluded its investigation and handed the case to the prosecutors for “review and prosecution.”
The statement did not mention when Yang will appear in court.
Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council said they had repeatedly reached out to mainland authorities about Yang’s detention but had not received a direct response.
“The government reiterates that Yang is innocent and calls on the Chinese Communist Party to release Yang and allow him to return to Taiwan as soon as possible,” the council said in a statement to CNN Tuesday.
Yang, 33, has been active in Taiwan’s social movements for more than a decade and once contested for a seat in Taiwan’s legislature, which he did not win.
In 2019, he became the vice chairman of the Taiwan National Party, a fringe political party advocating Taiwan independence. The party is now defunct, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of the Interior.
China’s state broadcaster CCTV reported on August 3 last year that Yang was taken into custody by the state security bureau in Wenzhou for engaging in “separatist activities” supporting Taiwan independence and endangering national security.
China’s ruling Communist Party claims Taiwan as its own territory, despite having never controlled it, and has refused to rule out the use of force to “unify” the island with mainland China.
Under leader Xi Jinping, China has stepped up crackdown against perceived threats from both within and outside the country, arresting Chinese and foreign nationals for endangering “national security” – a broadly and vaguely defined concept under Chinese law.
Non-mainland Chinese citizens have also been imprisoned for national security crimes. Taiwanese human rights activist Lee Ming-che, for example, was sentenced in 2017 to five years in prison for “subverting state power.” Lee was released last year after serving his full sentence.
CCTV said Yang had long advocated the idea of “Taiwan independence” and founded the Taiwan National Party to push for Taiwan to become an independent, sovereign country and a member state of the United Nations.
The broadcaster aired footage showing a handcuffed man purported to be Yang being held by two officers, as the police went through his phone, wallet and other personal belongings.
In a subsequent report, CCTV said Yang had been placed under “residential surveillance at a designated location” from August 4 – a form of secrete detention frequently applied to national security cases in China that United Nations human rights experts say tantamount to enforced disappearance.
Authorities in Beijing and Taipei have not given any explanation as to why Yang had traveled to the mainland.
However, Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council reminded Taiwan citizens to evaluate the risks before traveling to mainland China, citing the “repeated occurrence of similar cases recently,” without elaborating on the incidents.
“When the epidemic on both sides of the strait is gradually slowing down and people on both sides are hoping to resume normal exchanges, the mainland arbitrarily arrested Taiwanese people, seriously harming the rights and interests of our people and creating fear,” it said in a statement to CNN. “This is bound to be detrimental to the exchanges and interactions across the strait.”
News of Yang’s formal arrest comes as concerns are mounting for a Taiwan-based book publisher, who reportedly has been detained in China since March, according to Taiwan’s Central News Agency (CNA).
Li Yanhe, better known by his pen-name Fu Cha, was reportedly detained by police in Shanghai in March, shortly after he arrived in China to visit his family and deal with residency-related issues, the CNA reported.
Last week, an official with Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council said Li was “safe,” but declined to provide further details citing the wishes of his family.
A group of 40 Taiwan and international writers, scholars and media workers have issued a joint statement calling for Li’s release, according to the CNA.
Li’s company Gusa Publishing said in a statement Monday on Facebook that it will stop commenting on the case out of respect for Li’s family’s positions but thanked the public’s support for Li.
It declined to comment when contacted by CNN Tuesday.
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Taiwan’s extraordinary 111-year-old forest railway gets a makeover
Snaking through the dense forests of Alishan, one of the tallest mountain ranges in Taiwan, the 111-year-old Alishan Forest Railway has long been a popular attraction for train fans.
And now, the train’s operators are freshening up its historic fleet by adding six sleek new rail cars.
Collectively named Formosensis, the new carriages are the product of two years and nine months of planning and construction. Test drives kicked off in March, with the company hoping to wrap things up by June.
Both the livery and interiors of the six new cars are lined with two types of cypresses native to the island – Taiwan red cypress (or Chamaecyparis formosensis – which inspired the name) and Taiwan cypress (Chamaecyparis Taiwanensis).
“Taiwan red cypress and Taiwan cypress are fine and uniform wood materials,” say Alishan Forest Railway officials in a statement. “They’re durable, resistant to erosion and insects. The essential oils it contains exudes a unique phytoncide scent (the scent of the forest), which is both energizing and cleansing. Passengers could enjoy a refreshing forest bathing experience.”
Formosensis will elevate the experience for travelers in several ways. For one, the current cypress-themed train doesn’t have air-conditioning or soft seating.
Each new car will be fitted with 18 leather seats, including two four-seat booths and two two-seat booths. They will also feature bigger windows and warmer lights compared to older models, all to enhance the viewing experience.
But travelers will have to wait a bit longer before they can climb aboard. Details of the routes and launch date have yet to be confirmed, according to the train office’s spokesperson.
The existing Alishan Railway Route runs from Chiayi city station to the Loco Shed Park, a garage-turned-park where visitors can see preserved old train engines and trains that served the Alishan Forest Railway.
Completed in 1912 under the Japanese occupation, the railway was once used to transport now-endangered Taiwan cypress trees from Alishan. After logging was banned, it became the only passenger train to ride up the mountains.
It’s believed to be the highest narrow-gauge mountain railway in Asia, climbing from 30 meters to 2,216 meters above sea level – some 16 meters higher than the famed Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, which ascends from 100 meters to 2,200 meters.
The Formosensis carriages will be the latest addition to Alishan Forest Railway’s historic fleet, which includes restored steam locomotives.
Train lovers can experience some of the 71.6-kilometer railway’s original features – including the many spiral and horseshoe bends along the tracks. (You can see the aerial photos of some of the tracks in the above photo gallery.)
The journey also offers a glimpse into Taiwan’s diverse natural beauty, as the train goes through a tropical forest, then a subtropical forest and finally a temperate forest during its ascent to the top of Alishan.
In addition to developing more modern trains for the route, Alishan Forest Railway has also been restoring some of its older trains, as well as historical attractions along the line.
In 2021, the Alishan Forestry Railway and Cultural Heritage Office completed restorations of the century-old Shay 21 steam locomotive. It’s Alishan’s first 28-ton steam train, imported from the United States in 1912, and is powered by its original coal-burning engine.
Meanwhile, a Shay 31 locomotive makes occasional appearances during the flower blossoming season, from March to May.
The Alishan Forest Railway isn’t a continuous line – one section of track between Shizilu Station and Alishan Station was damaged in a typhoon.
Travelers can take the main line from Chiayi Station to Fenqihu Station (2 hours, 20 minutes) and continue the journey by bus from Fenqihu Station to Alishan Station.
Only one train departs daily from Chiayi, at 9 a.m on weekdays. Two more trains (at 8:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m.) are added at weekends. (Find the schedule on this website).
From Alishan Station, there are a few branch lines that ferry passengers to the attractions around the Alishan Scenic Area.
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China is getting ready to ‘launch a war’ – Taiwan alleges amid ‘serious warning’ to Taipei
A senior legislator from the island nation claims that China appears to be preparing to “launch a war” against Taiwan.
Beijing has issued a warning, claiming that recent exercises simulating the island nation’s encirclement were conducted as a “serious warning” to politicians who support independence.
Taiwan’s foreign minister Joseph Wu stated in an interview with CNN: “Look at the military drills, as well as their rhetoric – they seem to be attempting to get ready to start a war against Taiwan.
“The Taiwanese government looks at the Chinese military threat as something that cannot be accepted and we condemn it.”
The three days of large-scale air and sea exercises named Joint Sword that ended on Monday were a response to Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen’s meeting with US house speaker Kevin McCarthy in California last week.
China claims Taiwan as its own territory to be brought under its control by force if necessary and regularly sends ships and warplanes into airspace and waters near the island.
Such missions have grown more frequent in recent years, accompanied by increasingly bellicose language from the administration of Communist Party leader Xi Jinping.
Any conflict between the sides could draw in the US, Taiwan’s closest ally, which is required by law to consider all threats to the island as matters of “grave concern”.
China has kept up military pressure against Taiwan despite the formal conclusion of the military drills.
On Wednesday, Taiwan’s ministry of national defence said it tracked 35 flights by People’s Liberation Army warplanes within the previous 24 hours, as well as eight navy vessels in the waters surrounding the island.
While on Tuesday, President Xi inspected China’s Southern Theatre Command, according to state media.
On his visit, Mr Xi reportedly said it was necessary to deepen military training and preparation, speed up transformation and construction, and comprehensively raise the level of modernisation of the armed forces.
Though the People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theatre Command would be the lead force in any potential invasion of Taiwan, the Southern Theatre Command would likely have a significant backup role in any such attack.
The vast majority of Taiwan’s population favours maintaining the current de-facto independent status, while the island’s president, Ms Tsai, has said there is no need for a formal declaration since the democracy is already an independent nation.
Despite that, China – which does not recognise Taiwan’s government institutions and has cut off contact with Ms Tsai’s administration – routinely accuses her of plotting formal independence with outside backing.
When China refers to outside help for Taiwan, it is usually thought to mean the US.
“External forces are intensifying their endeavour of containing China with Taiwan as a tool,” Ms Zhu said.
She also repeated China’s assertion that its military threats are “targeted at Taiwan’s independence separatist activities and interference from external forces, and by no means at our compatriots in Taiwan”.
What that means in practical terms is not clear, although Beijing has long exploited political divisions within Taiwanese society, which boasts a robust democracy and strong civil liberties.
The Chinese military issued a threat as it concluded the exercises, saying its troops “can fight at any time to resolutely smash any form of ‘Taiwan independence’ and foreign interference attempts”.
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Taiwan’s President to transit US on Central America trip, without visiting McCarthy
President Tsai Ing-wen will travel through the US on her way to Central America at the end of the month, Taiwan said on Tuesday, but there was no indication on whether their much awaited encounter with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy would take place.
Presidential spokeswoman Lin Yu-chan informed reporters that Tsai would go to New York on March 29 before stopping in Guatemala and Belize.
Then, before heading back to Taiwan, she will make a stop in California.The presidential office declined to give any information regarding Tsai’s itinerary in the US in response to a question about whether she will meet with McCarthy as has been widely reported in recent weeks.
McCarthy told reporters earlier this month that he’ll meet with Tsai when she is in the US but didn’t specify a date. He also did not rule out the possibility of taking a trip to Taiwan himself in addition to their meeting.
Any face to face meeting between McCarthy and Tsai is likely to infuriate China’s ruling Communist Party, which claims democratic Taiwan as its own territory despite never having controlled it.
China launched massive war drills near Taiwan last summer, including firing multiple missiles over the island, when McCarthy’s predecessor Nancy Pelosi visited Taipei – the first such trip by a sitting House speaker in 25 years.
China hit out at initial reports of Tsai’s planned US transit emerged earlier this month with its Foreign Ministry declaring it was “seriously concerned” about the prospect of a meeting with McCarthy and repeating its position that Beijing “resolutely opposes all official exchanges between US and Taiwan.”
On Tuesday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin repeated that criticism, saying Beijing was opposed to the visit “in any name for any reason” and accusing Tsai of “promoting Taiwan independence” with the trip.
Taiwan’s refusal to confirm details of a potential McCarthy meeting in advance is not surprising given the geopolitical sensitivities.
Pelosi’s visit to Taipei last year was only officially made public once her plane landed, although it was reported by Western media ahead of time.
See why tensions are rising between US and China over Taiwan
Guatemala and Belize are two of Taiwan’s few remaining official diplomatic allies.
Last Tuesday, Honduras President Xiomara Castro said she planned to switch diplomatic recognition to Beijing.
That move would leave Taiwan with just 13 official diplomatic allies, mostly small nations in Latin American and the Pacific.
However, Taiwan has de-facto, but non-official, diplomatic relations with many Western nations including the United States.
During her trip to Taipei last year, Pelosi, a California Democrat, said the visit intended to make it “unequivocally clear” the US would “not abandon” the democratically governed island.
The US maintains close unofficial ties with Taiwan, and is bound by law to provide Taiwan with defensive arms.
Taiwanese leaders, including Tsai, have previously transited through the US on their way to other places.
Tsai most recently visited the US in July 2019 when she stopped over in New York before heading to Haiti, a diplomatic ally of Taiwan.
US officials have engaged in multiple communications with Chinese officials in recent weeks to remind them of past precedents regarding US transits of Taiwanese presidents, a senior administration official told reporters.
The official noted that that any transit to the US of Tsai should not be used by China as a pretext for an aggressive response.
Tsai’s planned trip comes as Taiwan and the United States ramp up efforts to counter China’s growing military capabilities.
It also coincides with former Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou’s visit to mainland China, the first such trip by a former Taiwanese leader since the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949.
Ma served as Taiwan’s president between 2008 and 2016, during which he drew stronger economic ties between China and Taiwan but kept Beijing’s push for “reunification” at bay.
The two trips are taking place at a politically sensitive time.
Taiwan is scheduled to hold its next presidential election in January next year. Tsai is not eligible for re-election.
Fears of a potential Chinese invasion, which have loomed over Taiwan for more than seven decades, are particularly high, supercharged by both Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s increased assertiveness and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
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Former president of Taiwan, to make a historic trip to China
Ma Ying-jeou, a former president of Taiwan, will make his first journey to mainland China since the 1949 conclusion of the Chinese Civil War next week.
Ma, a prominent figure in Taiwan’s opposition Kuomintang (KMT) party, will visit mainland China between March 27 and April 7, according to a statement released by his foundation on Sunday.
According to the foundation, he will pay respects to his ancestors in the southwest Hunan Province and head a group of Taiwanese students who will meet with counterparts from mainland China in several locations.
While the trip is ostensibly a private one it is filled with historic symbolism and comes at a time of deepening tensions over the future of Taiwan.
China’s ruling Communist Party has never controlled Taiwan but claims the self-ruled island democracy as its own and has repeatedly refused to rule out taking it by force.
At the end of the Chinese Civil War, Mao Zedong’s Communist Party took control of mainland China while the Kuomintang under Chiang Kai-shek fled to Taiwan– with both sides claiming to be the legitimate representative of China in the following decades, until Taiwan’s transition into a democracy in the 1990s.
But more recent decades saw increasingly ties warm between Beijing and the KMT, a rapprochement that reached its peak during Ma’s administration.
Ma served as Taiwan’s president between 2008 and 2016 during which he drew stronger economic ties between China and the democratically ruled island but kept Beijing’s push for reunification at bay.
His perceived closeness to Beijing, particularly on the economic front, sparked protests and a major voter backlash.
The KMT have lost the last two elections to the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which is much more skeptical toward Beijing and rejects the tacit understanding that both sides acknowledge they belong to “one China,” but with different interpretations of what that entails.
China’s leader Xi Jinping has ramped up economic, diplomatic and military pressure on Taiwan ever since the DPP took power in 2016.
Ma’s historic trip is taking place against that febrile geopolitical backdrop and comes as Taiwan and the United States ramp up efforts to counter China’s growing military capabilities.
His trip will also come at a politically sensitive time. Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen will soon make a stopover in the US en route to diplomatic allies in Latin America, an official with Taiwan’s Overseas Community Affairs Council told lawmakers earlier this month. US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy also said he plans to meet with her when she is in the US.
Taiwan is scheduled to hold its next presidential election in January next year. Tsai is not eligible for re-election.
Fears of a Chinese invasion have loomed over Taiwan for more than seven decades but they have been supercharged by both Xi’s increased assertiveness and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The KMT has long rejected being characterized as a “pro-Beijing” party. But its leadership, including Ma, have often pushed the need to improve ties.
The KMT’s deputy chairman Andrew Hsia visited Beijing last month to meet with senior Communist Party leader Wang Huning.
In contrast, Beijing has severed official communication with Taiwan’s Tsai-led government.
In 2015, Ma and Xi held a historic face-to-face meeting in Singapore – the first meeting between leaders of the Kuomintang and Chinese Communist Party since the end of the Chinese Civil War, although not on either side of the strait.
Ma’s foundation said a meeting between Xi and Ma is not currently being planned for the trip.
Taiwan’s presidential office said in a statement Sunday that Ma will be required to report details of his itinerary to the government before and after his visit to China.
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Taiwan allows more flights to China, says it is a ‘goodwill gesture’
In an effort to strengthen ties, Taipei has agreed to resume flights to several cities throughout China. The situation will become more comparable to the pre-coronavirus norm once the flights are resumed.
On Thursday, the Taiwanese government announced that it had agreed to start operating more direct flights to China, which had been suspended following the coronavirus pandemic. It stated that this was done in an effort to promote “healthy and orderly exchanges” with Beijing in light of the ongoing tension in the area.
At the moment, Taiwan only permits air travel to Beijing, Chengdu, Shanghai, and Xiamen in China.
However, there were more nonstop flights from Taiwan to numerous Chinese cities prior to the pandemic.
Lights to improve ‘cooperative interactions’
Taipei’s Mainland Affairs Council has approved regular flights for 10 more cities, including the economic hubs of Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Nanjing. Charter flights are also to be resumed for 13 Chinese cities.
The latest plan will incorporate 209 flights per week between the two countries. Of those, 99 flights will originate from China, and 110 from Taiwan.
Taiwanese health officials also said that covid testing would not be required at present for passengers arriving in Taiwan from China.
Chan Chih-hung, an official from the Council, told reporters that the move demonstrated Taiwan’s “most sincere goodwill.”
“We also hope to build on the foundation of these resumed flights to gradually increase the exchange of goodwill gestures and cooperative interactions by both sides,” he said.
‘Strained relations’
From 1949 to 2002, no direct flights were in place between Taiwan and China. Passengers had to transit through Hong Kong or Macau.
In 2003, the two began charter flights, after which regular direct flights were introduced in 2009.
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck the world in 2020, flights were again disrupted.
Taipei’s government has been attempting to resume its interactions with Beijing after they lifted the strict quarantine regulations last year. The island’s president Tsai Ing-wen said she hoped that the efforts would help improve China-Taiwan relations.
However, since China considers Taiwan as part of its own territory, Beijing does not hold formal diplomatic relations with Taipei.
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Taiwan discovers location of purported Chinese weather balloon crash
Taiwan claims it has discovered the remains of what seems to be a Chinese weather balloon that dropped.
Taiwan’s military said it had spotted an unidentified object drifting above Dongyin – a Taiwanese-controlled island off China’s coast – at 11:00 local time (03:00 GMT) on Thursday.
It later found a crash site on a shooting range.
Initial investigations suggested the remnants were part of a meteorological instrument, the military added.
On Friday, Taiwan’s Defence Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng said that officials would further investigate the crashed balloon but would not “jump to conclusions”.
This is the first time such a discovery has been made in Taiwan’s offshore islands, said senior defence official Chen Yu-lin, according to local media.
Tensions between China and the US have seen a fresh spike in recent weeks, after the US downed what it said was a Chinese surveillance balloon in its airspace earlier this month. The US also shot down three other objects it says are unlikely to be foreign spy crafts.
The sphere found on Dongyin was about a metre in diameter and bore the name of a China-based company that, based on online searches, stocks meteorological and radio appliances.
The company Taiyuan Radio No 1 Factory Co. Ltd is based in Taiyuan, one of China’s main industrial bases and capital of Shanxi province.
The sphere was also marked “GTS13 digital atmospheric sounding instrument” and “meteorological instrument”, with simplified Chinese language characters, the military said in a statement.
China has used simplified Chinese characters since the 1950s, but Taiwan continues to use traditional characters.
Authorities have not released pictures of the object.
Taiwan’s defence ministry said on Tuesday that it has not spotted any surveillance balloons from China in its vicinity, but also said it will shoot down any balloon it deems a threat.
China sees self-ruled Taiwan as a breakaway province that will eventually be under Beijing’s control.
But Taiwan sees itself as distinct from the Chinese mainland, with its own constitution and democratically-elected leaders.
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Japan, Philippines foster defense ties amid China tension
The agreement, which is seen as a step towards closer defence ties, permits Japanese troops to participate in humanitarian exercises in the Philippines.
In order to give Japanese troops more access to Philippine territory, the leaders of Japan and the Philippines have agreed to strengthen their defence ties.
The defence agreement was signed on Thursday by Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. It will enable Japanese troops to participate in training exercises to address natural disasters and humanitarian needs in the Philippines.
The agreement could lead to similar agreements between Japan and other countries in Southeast Asia, where competition for geopolitical influence has increased amid a more assertive Chinese presence in the region. It is seen as a step towards greater military cooperation between Tokyo and Manila.
Kishida said the countries will continue talks to further strengthen and streamline their militaries’ joint exercises and other operations, while seeking also to expand the transfer of Japanese defence equipment and technology to the Philippines as well as strengthening cooperation trilaterally with the United States.
“After our meeting, I can confidently say that our strategic partnership is stronger than ever as we navigate together the rough waters buffeting our region,” Marcos said at a joint news conference with Kishida.
Taiwan, which lies between Japan and the Philippines, has become a focal point of intensifying Chinese military activity that Tokyo and Washington worry could escalate into war as Beijing has promised to take back Taiwan, which it views merely as a rogue province and not a sovereign state.
Marcos’s visit to Japan come shortly after he and US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin reached an agreement on allowing the US more access to Philippine military bases to keep China’s territorial ambitions in check.
The Philippine and Japanese leaders “resolved” to increase the defence capabilities of their own countries and strengthen overall security cooperation with reciprocal port calls and aircraft visits and the transfer of more defence equipment and technology, according to a joint statement released late on Thursday.
It said Japan will transfer air surveillance radar systems to the Philippines and provide related personnel training.
The leaders “expressed serious concerns about the situation in the East and China Seas and strongly opposed the actions including force or coercion that may increase tensions,” the statement said.
Kishida and Marcos also agreed to strengthen economic and cybersecurity, and confirmed Japan’s continuing assistance to the Philippine coastguard in reinforcing its capabilities, including the improvement of port facilities at Subic Bay, a former US naval base.
“President Marcos’s visit here gives us impetus for Japan and the Philippines to further elevate our cooperation in recent years to even higher levels as we contribute to the peace and stability of the region and the international community,” Kishida said at the news conference.
The countries also agreed on loan arrangements and extensions for Philippine infrastructure projects, including $3bn to finance major commuter rail projects.
The agreement with Manila comes after Kishida’s government in December adopted key security and defence upgrades, including a counterstrike capability that breaks from Japan’s post-World War II principle of self-defence only, while also doubling defence spending within five years.
Japan is the Philippines’ biggest source of bilateral development assistance, according to Manila, and its second-largest trading partner. Japan is also the only country to have a bilateral free trade agreement with the Philippines.
Marcos met with Japan’s Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako ahead of his talks with Kishida on Thursday and invited the imperial couple to visit the Philippines. He also plans to join talks with trade and business officials before returning to the Philippines on Sunday.
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Taiwan’s president and vice pledges to donate salary for Turkey relief efforts
The presidential office has announced that in addition to the aid already provided by the island, Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen and Vice President William Lai will each donate one month’s salary for the relief efforts following the earthquake in Turkey.
The presidential office said in a statement that Tsai and Lai, who are widely anticipated to run for president in the elections scheduled for next year, “hope to do their part to help Turkey rebuild its homeland as soon as possible.”
Turkey, like the majority of nations, does not maintain formal diplomatic ties with Chinese-occupied Taiwan, but there are direct flights from Istanbul to Taipei, and the two nations do maintain de facto embassies in each other’s capitals.
“My heart goes with our people in Turkey,” Tsai wrote in a book of condolences when she went to the de facto Turkish embassy in Taipei.
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Philippines grants US wider access to military bases
The action comes amid worries about China’s assertiveness over Taiwan and in the contentious South China Sea.
According to a joint statement from the defence departments of the two nations, the Philippines and the United States have agreed to broaden their defence agreement, giving US troops access to four more military bases in the Southeast Asian country.
The deal was announced by US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin while he was in Manila for talks with newly elected Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
“The Philippines and the United States are proud to announce their plans to accelerate the full implementation of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) with the agreement to designate four new Agreed Locations in strategic areas of the country and the substantial completion of the projects in the existing five Agreed Locations,” the joint statement said. It was published on the websites of the US Department of Defense and on the Philippines’ Department of National Defense.
EDCA forms part of a decades-long security alliance between the US and the Philippines, and allows US troops to rotate through five Philippine bases, including those near disputed waters.
It also allows for the US military to store defence equipment and supplies on those bases.
The statement said the expansion would make the two countries’ alliance “stronger and more resilient” and “accelerate modernization of our combined military capabilities”.
The statement did not elaborate on the new locations, but said they would “allow more rapid support for humanitarian and climate-related disasters in the Philippines”. The US had allocated more than $82 million towards infrastructure investments at EDCA’s existing five sites, it added.
Ties between the Philippines and the United States have warmed since President Ferdinand Marcos Jr took office last year [Jam Sta Rosa/Pool via Reuters] The expansion comes as China becomes increasingly assertive in pressing its claim to the self-ruled island of Taiwan, as well as in the South China Sea where it claims almost the entire waterway under its controversial nine-dash line. The Philippines, other Southeast Asian nations and Taiwan also have overlapping claims to the sea, which is a major global trade route.
The relationship between the Philippines and the US – longtime allies – was strained under Marcos Jr’s predecessor Rodrigo Duterte, who favoured China and threatened to sever ties with Washington and expel US troops.
But ties have warmed under the new administration, with US Vice President Kamala Harris visiting last November.
“This is really the dawn of a new era after a rocky few years,” said Al Jazeera correspondent Barnaby Lo, who is in Manila.
Tension in disputed seas
While most of the new bases are expected to be in Luzon, the western island of Palawan, facing the contested Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, is expected to get an additional base as well.
A senior US defence official told reporters on Wednesday that the Philippines was under “day-to-day pressure from (China) in ways that contravene international law”.
The US aims to ensure “they have the capability to defend their own sovereignty”, the official said.
The Philippines has often found itself on the front line of Beijing’s aggressive tactics in the South China Sea, where China’s maritime militia has established an almost constant presence in Manila’s exclusive economic zone.
In 2012, China took control of Scarborough Shoal from the Philippines after a months-long standoff that began when Manila discovered Chinese fishing boats around the rocky outcrops.
Tensions rose again in 2021 when the Philippines protested against China’s “continuing illegal presence and activities” near its islands in the South China Sea.
Beijing has ignored a 2016 international court ruling – in a case brought by the Philippines – that its claim to the South China Sea was without merit.
China also claims democratic Taiwan as part of its territory and has not ruled out the use of force to achieve its objective. Last year, after then US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited the island, Beijing conducted major war games around and across the island.
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‘Very high’ odds of war with China, US Republican warns
A conflict with China over Taiwan may occur in 2025, according to Michael McCaul, the new chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the US House of Representatives.
After a US general raised eyebrows with a memo predicting war in two years, a top Republican in the US Congress claims the likelihood of conflict with China over Taiwan “is very high.”
In a memo dated February 1 but released on Friday, General Mike Minihan, who heads the Air Mobility Command, wrote to the leadership of its roughly 110,000 members, saying, “My gut tells me we will fight in 2025.”
Michael McCaul, the new chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the US House of Representatives, on Sunday told Fox News “I hope he is wrong… I think he is right though.”
General Minihan’s views do not represent the Pentagon, but show concern at the highest levels of the US military over a possible attempt by China to exert control over Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its territory.
Both the US and Taiwan will hold presidential elections in 2024, potentially creating an opportunity for China to take military action, Minihan wrote.
If China failed to take control of Taiwan bloodlessly then “they are going to look at a military invasion in my judgement. We have to be prepared for this”, McCaul said.
He accused the Democratic administration of President Joe Biden of projecting weakness after the bungled US pullout from Afghanistan, which could make war with China more likely.
“The odds are very high that we could see a conflict with China and Taiwan and the Indo-Pacific,” McCaul said.
The White House declined to comment on McCaul’s remarks.
‘Highly unlikely’
Representative Adam Smith, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, said he disagreed with Minihan’s assessment.
Smith told Fox News Sunday that war with China is “not only not inevitable, it is highly unlikely. We have a very dangerous situation in China. But I think generals need to be very cautious about saying we’re going to war, it’s inevitable”.
The United States needs to be in a position to deter China from military action against Taiwan, “but I’m fully confident we can avoid that conflict if we take the right approach”, Smith said.
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said earlier this month that he seriously doubted that ramped-up Chinese military activity near the Taiwan Strait was a sign of an imminent invasion of the island by Beijing.
On Saturday, a Pentagon official said the general’s comments were “not representative of the department’s view on China”.
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US warship sails through Taiwan Strait, angers Beijing
On Thursday, a US warship crossed the Taiwan Strait, which separates Taiwan from the Chinese mainland, drawing ire from Beijing.
According to the US military, the USS Chung-passage Hoon’s demonstrated US support for a “free and open Indo-Pacific”.
However, a spokesman for the Chinese embassy in Washington claimed the trip was made to “flex muscles” and charged that the US was “undermining peace and stability.”
Last year, tensions in the Taiwan Strait rose sharply.
After former US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi‘s visit to the island in August, China conducted its largest military drills ever there.
China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has vowed to unify it, by force if necessary. Self-ruled Taiwan sees itself as distinct from the mainland.
The Chinese military said it had monitored the USS Chung-Hoon’s transit. Its embassy spokesman added the country would “safeguard its national sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
The vessel is named after Rear Admiral Gordon Pai’ea Chung-Hoon, who served in the US navy during the Second World War.
Tensions between Washington and Beijing have risen in recent years and Taiwan is a flashpoint in the relationship, with the US walking a diplomatic tightrope on the issue.
The US abides by the “One China” policy – a cornerstone of the two countries’ diplomatic relationship which recognises only one Chinese government – and has formal ties with Beijing and not Taiwan.
But it also maintains a “robust unofficial” relationship with the island. That includes selling weapons for Taiwan to defend itself.
Last month, the US accused a Chinese air force jet of carrying out an unsafe manoeuvre after it flew within 20 feet of a US air force plane over the South China Sea.
China subsequently accused the US plane of carrying out an unsafe action.
Source: BBC.com -
China-Taiwan: Worry as Taiwanese military device is being repaired in China
A device used by the military for its missiles that was sent to China for repair has prompted calls for tighter security in Taiwan.
A launch measurement optical instrument for Taiwan’s Hsiung-Feng III anti-ship missiles was sent to its European manufacturer.
Then, according to Taiwanese media, it was returned to Taiwan from the eastern Chinese province of Shandong.
Beijing increased military activity near the island last year.
China sees Taiwan as part of its territory and has vowed to unify to it by force if necessary. Self-ruled Taiwan sees itself as distinct from the mainland.
President Tsai Ing-wen has announced new plans to bolster Taiwan’s defence in the event of an attack from Beijing, including extending mandatory military service from four months to one year.
In a statement, Taiwanese missile developer the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology said the device had been shipped to Switzerland by the company that had originally supplied it to the Taiwanese military.
From there it was diverted for repair at the manufacturer’s Asia maintenance centre in the Chinese city of Qingdao, it said.
The institute said it had removed memory cards before sending it to Europe and had also run information security checks on the device after its return and had no concerns over possible information leaks.
Dr Su Tzu-yun from Taiwan’s Institute of Defence Security Research said the optical devices were not direct missile components but said Taiwan had to be more careful anyway.
“Taiwan must be more strict and careful in its contract management,” he said. “Of course we would not want such equipment to be sent to China for repair.”
The tool, a theodolite, is used to measure precise geographical location for missile launches as well as the angle and direction of the launchers, Dr Su said.
“It’s like when you buy a computer, it’s a device you put on the desk to go with the machine,” he said.
He suggested that the manufacturer had not been aware the devices, purchased by a supplier in Taiwan, had subsequently been used for military purposes.
It is not the first time concerns over the security of Taiwan’s missile programme have been raised. Last year, three people at two Taiwanese suppliers were sentenced to between four and 10 years in prison for using products from China to fake missile compartments supposedly to be made by US manufacturers.
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Taiwan reports the largest-ever incursion by Chinese bombers
Taiwan’s Defense Ministry announced Tuesday that China has sent a record 18 nuclear-capable H-6 bomber aircraft into Taiwan’s air defence zone as Beijing continues to increase strain on the autonomous island.
According to Taiwan’s Defense Ministry, a total of 21 Chinese warplanes were sent into Taiwan’s southwest air defence identification zone (also known as an ADIZ) in the 24-hour period between Monday morning and Tuesday morning.
According to the ministry, it kept an eye on the situation and tracked the Chinese aircraft using both its fighter jets and land-based missile systems.
Since Taipei started publishing daily data on Chinese fighter incursions in 2020, the flights mark the highest number of H-6 sorties in a 24-hour period.
An ADIZ is unilaterally imposed and distinct from sovereign airspace, which is defined under international law as extending 12 nautical miles from a territory’s shoreline.
China’s ruling Chinese Communist Party views Taiwan – a democratically governed island of 24 million – as part of its territory, despite having never controlled it. It has long vowed to “reunify” the island with the Chinese mainland, by force if necessary.
Tensions surrounding Taiwan have increased markedly this year. A visit to the island by United States House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in August prompted Chinese fury and an immediate flurry of military exercises.
Since then, Beijing has stepped up military pressure tactics on the island, sending fighter jets across the median line of the Taiwan Strait, the body of water separating Taiwan and China.
For decades, the median line had served as an informal demarcation line between the two, with military incursions across it being rare.
In November, US President Joe Biden met Chinese leader Xi Jinping in-person for the first time during his presidency at the G20 summit in Indonesia. Afterward, Biden described the three-hour meeting as “open and candid,” and cast doubt on an imminent invasion of Taiwan.
Formal bilateral talks on climate cooperation are expected to resume as well as part of a broader set of agreements between Biden and Xi – with China having previously halted talks as part of retaliation for Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan.
Source: CNN.com
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Taiwan’s front-line battle against mobile phone fraud
Telecoms security boss Jeff Kuo says that fighting mobile phone fraud is a constant battle, and that Taiwan is on the front line.
“This is like a miniature of the world, here in Taiwan, where we see all kinds of fraud in advance,” says Mr Kuo. “We can use this knowledge to protect other countries, because we can see what is going to happen first.”
Mr Kuo is boss of Taiwanese firm Gogolook, which owns Whoscall, one of the most popular spam blocking apps on the island, and across East Asia in general.
It says its artificial intelligence powered software constantly trawls more than 1.6 billion telephone numbers, both Taiwanese ones, and also ones from across Asia and other parts of the world, to block messages and calls from likely fraudsters.
IMAGE SOURCE,GOGOLOOK Image caption, Gogolook works with Taiwanese anti-fraud officials Working with Taiwan’s Criminal Investigation Bureau’s (CIB’s) “165 Anti-Fraud Program”, Whoscall blocked more 52.3 million scam messages, and 13.1 million scam calls, last year in Taiwan alone.
But why is Taiwan such a hotbed for telecoms fraud? Mr Kuo says the island’s small population of 23.5 million makes it a prefect “practice ground” for organised criminals, both Taiwanese gangs and those from mainland China and elsewhere. They try out a new phone scam in Taiwan, and if it works there then they can expand it out across Asia and then globally.
“[For example], we provide Apple with a lot of evidence… until they realise there is a serious problem,” says Mr Kuo. “A problem that is not only going to spread out in Taiwan, but also in Asia Pacific, and if they don’t take care of it, very soon it will be in Europe and the US.”
CIB telecoms fraud investigator Jean Hsiao Ya-yun tells the BBC that another reason why so many new scams originate on the island is the very fact that Taiwan is one of Asia’s top manufacturers of high-tech technology. She says this level of technical expertise is shared by Taiwanese scammers.
Ms Hsiao adds that the coronavirus pandemic was a boom time for scammers as millions of people were stuck at home, and, therefore, more reliant upon their phones.
“And the Taiwan stock market was very high at the time, so many people earned a lot of money,” she says, adding that this led to a big rise in investment scams.
“Scammers would [for example] give advice on app pages, or they would start a chat group saying that they can tell you when a stock is going to rise, and they can share this intel if you join their group.”
The scammers would then ask for money for the information. Other such investment scams would see people receiving phone message from friendly strangers offering loans at very low rates.
Such is the extent of the criminal networks behind the scamming that some Taiwanese gangs have opened up operations overseas. Ms Hsiao points to one case from 2020 when 92 Taiwanese people were arrested in Montenegro.
In other cases, Taiwanese people are lured overseas to countries such as Cambodia under the false promise of high wages. There they are forced to work against their will as telephone fraudsters, as the BBC reported in September.
Mr Kuo admits that there is a “weapons race” between anti-fraud firms like his, and the fraudsters. And while Whoscall and similar apps block millions of messages and phone calls, some still get through.
Anyone who has lived in Taiwan, regardless of age or nationality, is familiar with one method used by fraudsters – burst dialling. Answering an unknown number leads to you hearing a brief dialling sound, and then a pre-recorded message starts playing.
These calls are made by auto-dial systems capable of making hundreds a minute. It’s an effective way for the fraudsters to find the working numbers of people who are prepared to answer their phone despite not knowing who is ringing them.
IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES Image caption, Gogolook says it warns US giant Apple about new phone fraud scams Taiwanese cyber security expert TonTon Huang says that once such a person has been found, scammers call back.
“If [they find] the number is used by someone, they will sell the active phone data, or tell you that you need to pay a loan, insurance payment, or remit money,” he says. “The most common one seems to be about instalment payments, like you shopped online and you need to pay in instalments or something.”
While scammers are often looking for older people who might not be familiar with technology or keep up with scam trends, the CIB’s Ms Hsiao says they still dupe plenty of young adults as well.
Earlier this year, a 20-something Taiwanese YouTuber Edison Lin posted a video on the platform in which he emotionally revealed that he had been a victim of telephone fraud.
He had been conned out of $13,000 [£12,600] by two fraudsters working together.
Mr Lin said it happened after he was called by someone pretending to an employee of a restaurant he had visited a few months earlier. The man told him that he had accidently been overcharged by $380, and that he would be offered assistance to get the money back.
After Mr Lin had ended that call he was soon telephoned again, this time by the other fraudster pretending to from his bank.
“When the [fake] clerk from E.Sun Bank called, he knew the whole story, he told me how to get compensation from E.Sun,” Mr Lin said in his video. “His professionalism made me think he was really a bank clerk.
“Before long we were talking back and forth for half an hour… and I noticed one of them was transferring [my] money… I still haven’t paid off the debt.”
Prof Sandra Wachter, a senior research fellow in AI at Oxford University, is a global expert on the use of AI software systems.
She says AI can be an effective tool in defending against telecoms and other tech-based fraud, but that the general public also needs to be better educated about the risks.
IMAGE SOURCE,SANDRA WACHTER Image caption, Prof Wachter says technology can only do so much to protect people from fraud “Technology is being used to scale-up fraud attempts… it allows scammers to cast a wider net and work more efficiently,” she says. “At the same time, some people might be more gullible and vulnerable to deceit because texting or calls seem legitimate, especially if executed in convincing and sophisticated ways.
“Since fraud is scaling up, the strategy to combat these attempts must too scale up and so it makes sense to deploy AI software for this purpose.
“The question is how effective these attempts are, and if we will be able to fully stop this behaviour? And the answer is, probably not, but we can curb it temporarily. Digital literacy and education can help people not to fall into the trap. AI can help to detect these scams and intervene.”
Back at spam-blocking app Whoscall, Jeff Kuo agrees, saying fighting fraudsters “may be never-ending, but so is our determination to sharpen our skills and stand up”.
Source: BBC.com
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Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen quits as party chair after local elections
Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen has resigned as head of the governing Democratic People’s Party (DPP) after its poor showing in local elections.
The opposition Kuomintang (KMT) won several major races on Saturday, including in the capital Taipei.
The vote has drawn global attention as Taiwan becomes a bigger geopolitical flashpoint between China and the US.
President Tsai had framed the election as a vote for democracy amid rising tensions with China.
“The election results were not as expected… I should shoulder all the responsibility and I resign as DPP chairwoman immediately,” Ms Tsai, who will continue as president of the self-ruled island, told reporters.
The elections for local councils and city mayors theoretically have a domestic focus, covering issues such as crime, housing, and social welfare, and those elected will not have a direct say on Taiwan’s policy regarding China.
However, Ms Tsai and government officials urged voters to use the election to send a message about standing up for democracy, as Beijing increases pressure on the island.
Voters also rejected lowering the voting age from 20 to 18, in a referendum that was run alongside the local elections.
The Chinese government sees Taiwan as a breakaway province that will, eventually, be part of the country.
But many Taiwanese people consider their self-ruled island – with its own form of government and a democratic system – to be distinct.
Tensions reached a peak in August when Beijing staged huge military drills around Taiwan in a protest against US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to the island.
The US has long walked a tightrope over Taiwan. Officially, it has no formal ties with Taiwan, but has also pledged to supply the island with defensive weapons and stressed that any attack by China would cause “grave concern”.
Two parties, two views
There are two main political parties in Taiwan and they have different approaches to China.
The Kuomintang (KMT), a party of conservative business champions, are traditionally seen as pro-China “doves”.
They have advocated economic engagement with China and have appeared to be in favour of unification, though they strongly deny being pro-China.
Their main rival is Ms Tsai’s governing Democratic People’s Party (DPP). Ms Tsai won by a landslide in the 2020 national election.
She has taken a strong stance towards China, saying Beijing needed to show Taiwan respect and that Taipei would not bow to pressure.
She was re-elected on a promise to stand up to Beijing. Locals told the BBC at the time that protests in Hong Kong and Beijing’s subsequent crackdown on civil rights had raised concerns in Taiwan.
Source: BBC.com
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What’s going on with Taiwan?
As we’ve been reporting, one of the main items expected to be on the agenda for the Chinese and American leaders during their ongoing talks is the thorny topic of Taiwan.
The key thing to understand here is that there’s a debate over the status of the island.
China views Taiwan as a renegade province which is destined to one day be reunited with the mainland – by force if needed.
However, Taiwan has many characteristics of an independent state. It’s a self-ruled democracy, and people there see themselves as being separate from Beijing – whether or not independence is ever officially declared.
The United States has long tried to walk a tightrope. Officially, it only recognises the government in Beijing. However, President Biden has repeatedly said the US would defend Taiwan if Beijing’s troops ever invaded. The White House has always looked to walk back his comments.
Tensions have been building recently – and peaked in August when Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the US House of Representatives, visited Taiwan. China responded with large-scale military drills nearby.
Source: BBC.com
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A 3rd external force might hit Ghana soon – Oppong-Nkrumah warns of potential China-Taiwan war
Information Minister Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah has warned Ghanaians of a possible war between China and Taiwan which he said has the possibility of having disastrous consequences on Ghana’s economy.
According to him, Ghanaians are not talking about the implication of this ensuing conflict but will say it is not affecting Ghana’s economy once it happens like some are doing for the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war.
“There is a 3rd problem coming, and if we fail to pay attention to it, it hits us, and people will deny it is one of the reasons for the challenges in the country.
“Do you know that China has extended the tenure of office for Xi Jinping by an extra five years? Read Xi Jipin’s inaugural speech. Somethings we fail to pay attention to these things. Xi Jinping said that he would not rule out taking over Taiwan.
“The issues between China and Taiwan are no different from the issues of Russia and Ukraine – where one country thinks the other country is part of his territory and attempt to use false to annex it. If China attacks Taiwan can you imagine the consequences, especially at this time that crude oil costs $94 per barrel and is set to rise again due to OPEC cutting supply,” he said in Twi.
Oppong Nkrumah, who made these remarks in an Asempa interview monitored by GhanaWeb, said that the media in other countries are seriously discussing the implication of the potential war, but the media in Ghana are silent about it.
“If indeed China attacks Taiwan, what will be the implications? So, if we are not seeing the implication of the Russia-Ukraine war on our economy, what are we saying about the implication of a potential war between China and Ukraine?
“If you turn in to other (foreign) media houses, they are discussing the implications of this issue, but we are not, and if it hits us, we will be saying it is not affecting our economy,” he reiterated.
The information minister made these remarks while answering a question on calls by some Ghanaians for President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to apologise to Ghanaians about the current hardships in the country.
He indicated that the president admitted that the country is facing an economic crisis, and calls for him to apologise for it are immaterial.
Source: Ghanaweb