US senators on Friday last week proposed a bill — the US-Taiwan partnership in the Americas act — supporting Taiwan’s diplomatic allies in Latin America and the Caribbean to counter China’s pressure on them to sever ties with Taiwan.The bill was introduced by US senators Jeff Merkley and Tim Kaine o
LARGEST SALE EVER: Alaska’s location is strategically advantageous due to the relatively short shipping route to Taiwan, and it would diversify LNG sources, CPC said
Taiwan and Alaska are close to finalizing a deal for Taiwan to purchase 5.44 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG), which would mark the largest such sale in Alaska’s history, the state’s governor said.“It’s moving to an absolute solid offtake with Taiwan of 6 million tons of gas... Now that
India and the Philippines have staged joint naval exercises in the disputed South China Sea for the first time, a high-profile military deployment that antagonized China.Beijing has separate territorial disputes with the two Asian democracies and a long-running regional rivalry with New Delhi.Armed
South Korea yesterday said that it was removing loudspeakers used to blare K-pop and news reports to North Korea, as the new administration in Seoul tries to ease tensions with its bellicose neighbor.The nations, still technically at war, had already halted propaganda broadcasts along the demilitari
SECURITY FLAWS: One ministry failed to compile critical infrastructure lists, leaving providers to assess themselves, while another lacked coordination and a security plan
The National Audit Office in its latest report on the central government’s fiscal accounts for last year called out four ministries for failing to adequately safeguard critical infrastructure.The Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ministry of Transportation and Com
FLOOD RECOVERY: “Post-Typhoon Danas reconstruction special act” is expected to be approved on Thursday, the premier said, adding the flood control in affected areas would be prioritized
About 200cm of rainfall fell in parts of southern Taiwan from Monday last week to 9am yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said.Kaohsiung’s Taoyuan District (桃源) saw total rainfall of 2,205mm, while Pingtung County’s Sandimen Township (三地門) had 2,060.5mm and Tainan’s Nanhua District (
The French National Assembly’s Taiwan Friendship Group on Friday issued a statement rejecting claims made in a report on Europe-China relations by French Legislator Sophia Chikirou of the La France Insoumise (LFI) party as replicating Beijing’s lies and distorting a UN resolution.French newspaper Le
The Russian and Chinese navies are carrying out artillery and anti-submarine drills in the Sea of Japan as part of scheduled joint exercises, the Russian Pacific Fleet was quoted as saying yesterday.The drills are taking place two days after US President Donald Trump said he had ordered two nuclear
Tsunami waves were possible in three areas of Kamchatka in Russia’s Far East, the Russian Ministry for Emergency Services said yesterday after a magnitude 7.0 earthquake hit the nearby Kuril Islands.“The expected wave heights are low, but you must still move away from the shore,” the ministry said o
NEW GEAR: On top of the new Tien Kung IV air defense missiles, the military is expected to place orders for a new combat vehicle next year for delivery in 2028
Mass production of Tien Kung IV (Sky Bow IV) missiles is expected to start next year, with plans to order 122 pods, the Ministry of National Defense’s (MND) latest list of regulated military material showed.The document said that the armed forces would obtain 46 pods of the air defense missiles next
HANDOUTS: The Cabinet believes that the legislature’s version of the cash handout is not constitutional, although its own version would retain the provision
The Executive Yuan would propose a special budget of NT$545 billion (US$18.15 billion) that includes a nationwide cash handout of NT$10,000, sources said yesterday, adding that a clause would be included to exclude wealthy households from receiving the cash handout.The legislature on July 11 passed
A bipartisan group of US representatives have introduced a draft US-Taiwan Defense Innovation Partnership bill, aimed at accelerating defense technology collaboration between Taiwan and the US in response to ongoing aggression by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).The bill was introduced by US repres
In a warning to Russia, US President Donald Trump on Friday said he was ordering the repositioning of two US nuclear submarines “based on the highly provocative statements” of former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev, who has raised the prospect of war online.Trump wrote on social media that, based
The people of Gaza did not need this week’s official confirmation from UN-backed hunger experts that the “worst-case scenario of famine” was unfolding there. For months they have watched as their children waste away.Over the course of the week, Gaza passed two appalling milestones. The official Pale
NEGOTIATIONS: The nation hopes to lower the 20 percent tariff rate through ongoing negotiations, with chips exempt for now as a US review is still pending
The new 20 percent tariff rate the US set on goods from Taiwan is “temporary,” and the government expects to negotiate a lower figure, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday.Tariff rates on semiconductors, electronics, and information and communications technology products are to be determined s
HEADWINDS: The new tariffs add to the challenges already faced by Taiwanese manufacturers, who have been squeezed by unfavorable foreign exchange rates
Local manufacturers of machine tools, molds, plastic products and electronic materials are expected to bear the brunt of the newly announced 20 percent US tariff, as their main competitors from Japan and South Korea face lower rates, an impact assessment report obtained by the Taipei Times showed ye
Some Asian nations reacted with relief yesterday after US President Donald Trump announced tariffs that in some cases were lower than threatened, and delayed by a week to Thursday.However, while countries such as Taiwan still hope to negotiate lower rates, uncertainty remains over transshipments and
The Ministry of National Defense is to propose a NT$600 billion to NT$900 billion (US$19.98 billion to US$29.98 billion) special budget to purchase command and control systems, as well as air defense missiles, from the US, a senior official said yesterday.Taiwan is in negotiations with the US over t
Ukraine’s Parliament on Thursday overwhelmingly approved a bill presented by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy that restores the independence of two of the country’s key anti-corruption watchdogs, reversing his contentious move last week that curbed their power and brought an outcry.Last week’
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