Striking civil servants occupied the Transport Ministry building in Athens early yesterday, forcing international debt inspectors to reschedule a meeting where they were to discuss reforms, including new licensing laws for taxis.
Greek Transport Minister Yannis Ragoussis’s morning meeting was delayed to the evening after the debt inspectors, collectively known as “the troika,” arrived to find the building under occupation and protesting employees in the courtyard.
A similar meeting on Thursday with Greek Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos was moved to a different government building in central Athens because of an occupation of that ministry.
Protesting employees continued their occupation yesterday morning, guarding the entrance where the words “They shall not pass” had been spray-painted across drawn-down metal shutters, and Venizelos again met the debt inspectors in another building.
The inspectors from the IMF, European Central Bank and European Commission returned to Athens this week after suspending their review earlier this month over missed targets and delayed implementation of reforms. Their approval is critical for Greece to receive the next 8 billion euro (US$10.84 billion) installment of its 110 billion euro bailout loan package agreed on last year.
Without the next batch of loans, Greece has said it has only enough funds to last it through the middle of this month, after which it will be unable to pay salaries and pensions.
Mired in a deep recession and faced with growing anger on the streets, the government has been unable to meet all the targets set out in its bailout agreement. Other EU countries, faced with the possibility of a messy Greek default that would drag down the euro and damage their banks, approved a second, 109 billion euro bailout for Greece on July 21. However, the details remain to be finalized, and some have suggested the plan needs to be reworked.
In a rush to ensure approval of the sixth batch of bailout loans, the government this month announced a series of new measures, including a new property tax, pension cuts and the suspension of 30,000 civil servants on partial pay by the end of the year.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft