The US Senate’s passage of the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which urges Taiwan’s inclusion in the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise and allocates US$1 billion in military aid, marks yet another milestone in Washington’s growing support for Taipei. On paper, it reflects the stea
Beyond headlines of carbon markets and energy transitions, climate action fundamentally pertains to the Earth we inhabit. Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 13 calls for swift climate change action. SDG 15 — Life on Land — calls for nations to protect, restore and maintain the sustainable use of ter
Sanae Takaichi could bring about a new era. Japan on Tuesday turned a new page in its history with the election of its first female prime minister, Sanae Takaichi.Takaichi has demonstrated resilience and composure while navigating the stormy seas of politics — from party factions to external power s
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US President Donald Trump — through speeches, executive orders, social media postings, a ubiquitous public presence and a dizzying array of other premeditated, impulsive or incendiary proclamations — specializes in flooding the zone. He inevitably leaves flotsam in his wake, whether by accident or d
Sanae Takaichi has just been confirmed as Japan’s first female prime minister. More important than her gender might be her taste for head-banging — in music and politics.In what has been a rock-and-roller-coaster two weeks, she unexpectedly emerged as leader of the Liberal Democratic Party, swiftly
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) last week sparked debate with a Facebook post asking whether public caning could help deter crimes such as fraud and drunk driving in Taiwan.Hung wrote that Singapore plans to expand the use of judicial caning — traditionally applied to
After Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairwoman-elect Cheng Li-wun’s (鄭麗文) victory in the party’s leadership race, the KMT’s intent to bring in external forces to counter its domestic political rivals became all the more apparent.There is no shortage of such stories in history. At the end of the Mi
In 1976, the Gang of Four was ousted. The Gang of Four was a leftist political group comprising Chinese Communist Party (CCP) members: Jiang Qing (江青), its leading figure and Mao Zedong’s (毛澤東) last wife; Zhang Chunqiao (張春橋); Yao Wenyuan (姚文元); and Wang Hongwen (王洪文).The four wielded supreme power
During the Double Ten National Day celebrations on Oct. 10, TikTok videos featuring the events did not only come from Taiwanese. Under videos featuring a carnival at Taipei 101 posted by Indonesians in the city, many migrant workers expressed a surprising sentiment about the country.A phrase that st
Amid election interference by China, former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislator Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) on Saturday last week was elected as the party’s new chairwoman. After her victory, Cheng expressed her commitment to achieving complete governance, cross-strait peace and shared prosperity by 2
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A ladder truck, an angle-grinder, a maxi-scooter and seven minutes. That appears to be all it took for thieves to steal priceless jewelry from the Louvre, the world’s most-visited museum. The vulnerability of this cornerstone of French soft power adds to the nation’s sense of malaise, and fingers ar
Is artificial intelligence (AI) transforming the economy in any real sense, or is the promise of rapid growth mere hype? US stock markets certainly favor the former view: Shares of AI and tech companies have accounted for about three-quarters of the S&P 500’s gains this year. Venture capital investo
In a rare interview more than 20 years ago, Jonathan Powell, who is British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s national security adviser, admitted: “My job is best done in the shadows.”The collapse of the state’s prosecution of Christopher Cash and Christopher Berry, two Britons accused of spying for Chi
The topic of increased intergenerational conflict has been making headlines in the past few months, showcasing a problem that would only grow as Taiwan approaches “super-aged society” status. A striking example of that tension erupted on the Taipei MRT late last month, when an apparently able-bodied
Japan’s parliament made history yesterday as it elected Sanae Takaichi, president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), as the country’s first female prime minister.What was seen as a crisis just a week ago after the pacifist Komeito party exited the ruling coalition has turned into a decisi
The party of former Czech prime minister Andrej Babis this month won 80 out of 200 seats in parliamentary elections. Combined with the 15 seats of the Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD) party and the 13 of the Motorists for Themselves (AUTO) party, the result paves the way for the populist leader’s
The Italian Senate on Oct. 9 hosted a conference titled “Chinese Influence in the EU: The Cases of Italy and Eastern Europe (Romania),” co-organized by Doublethink Lab, Expert Forum and the Global Committee for the Rule of Law “Marco Pannella.”The event brought together a distinguished panel, Taiwan
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