After nine years of investigation, an international arbiter has concluded its probe into the sale of Lafayette warships to Taiwan. The French government, along with Thales (formerly Thomson-CSF), may be required to pay 1 billion euros (US$1.3 billion) to Taiwan in compensation, Paris-based newspaper Le Parisien reported yesterday.
The three judges are still working on their verdict, but will have it ready in three to four months, a lawyer was quoted as saying.
However, a lawyer for Thales said that if it were to give back US$5 million to the Taiwanese government — the equivalent of the amount that the broker in the arms sale deal, Andrew Wang (汪傳浦), had in his account — the compensation could possibly be reduced, the report said.
When reached for comment, Ministry of National Defense spokesman Yu Sy-tue (虞思祖) told the Taipei Times that the ministry “has not yet received any updated information from France.”
The case stemmed from the Taiwanese Navy’s procurement of six Lafayette-class frigates from French defense company Thomson-CSF. A 2001 investigation concluded that as much as US$400 million in kickbacks may have been paid. Allegations emerged after the body of Captain Yin Ching-feng (尹清楓), who ran the arms acquisitions office, was found floating in the sea off Ilan in 1993.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY AGENCIES
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique