President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday thanked Canada for its support during recent Chinese military drills and praised the deepening of ties between the two sides, shortly ahead of a visit to China by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.Two lawmakers from Carney’s Liberal Party this week ended a vis
A Ministry of Foreign Affairs official yesterday said that a delegation that visited China for an APEC meeting did not receive any kind of treatment that downgraded Taiwan’s sovereignty.Department of International Organizations Director-General Jonathan Sun (孫儉元) said that he and a group of ministry
UNREST: The US president moved to further isolate Tehran, announcing a 25 percent tariff on goods from nations doing business with the Islamic republic
Iranian protests appeared to persist in localized pockets overnight as an activist group warned of imminent executions by the state and said the civilian death toll from the unrest could be in the thousands.The Oslo-based Iran Human Rights group said at least 648 people had died in the protests by M
Finance ministers from the G7 and other major economies on Monday met in Washington to discuss ways to reduce dependence on rare earths from China, including setting a price floor and new partnerships to build up alternative supplies, ministers said.The meeting, convened by US Secretary of the Treas
The US and Taiwan have reached a broad consensus on their trade deal and further details would be announced after a final wrap-up meeting, the Executive Yuan’s Office of Trade Negotiations said today.The New York Times yesterday reported that the two nations are nearing a trade deal to reduce Taiwan
MIXED SOURCING: While Taiwan is expanding domestic production, it also sources munitions overseas, as some, like M855 rounds, are cheaper than locally made ones
Taiwan and the US plan to jointly produce 155mm artillery shells, as the munition is in high demand due to the Ukraine-Russia war and should be useful in Taiwan’s self-defense, Armaments Bureau Director-General Lieutenant General Lin Wen-hsiang (林文祥) told lawmakers in Taipei yesterday.Lin was respon
CHINA THREAT: Of the 127 people indicted since the act’s passage in 2020, only five have been convicted, with the sentences averaging three to six months, MAC said
The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday urged lawmakers to approve proposed amendments to the Anti-Infiltration Act (反滲透法) given the light punishments meted out to offenders under current regulations.Speaking at a meeting of the legislature’s Internal Administration Committee reviewing the chan
The Taipei City Government is looking at options to limit smoking in public places, with one version of the policy likely to be implemented this year, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said yesterday.A “Taipei smoke-free city” plan is expected to be launched by the end of this year, Chiang said.City
US President Donald Trump said Iran wants to negotiate with Washington after his threat to strike the Islamic republic over its bloody crackdown on protesters, as activists yesterday said the death toll in the nationwide demonstrations rose to at least 544.Iran had no direct reaction to Trump’s comm
US prosecutors have opened an inquiry threatening a “criminal indictment” against the US Federal Reserve, its chairman Jerome Powell said, denouncing new “threats and ongoing pressure” from the administration of US President Donald Trump.Powell said in a rare video statement on Sunday that the US ce
BROAD CAMPAIGN: Beijing has adopted a government-civilian partnership model to disseminate disinformation in Taiwan through bots, AI and more, an NSB report showed
Taiwan’s national intelligence community recorded 45,590 fake online accounts last year, up from 28,216 in 2024, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said in a report released yesterday.As part of its cognitive warfare against Taiwan, the Chinese Communist Party has integrated the resources and techno
PREPAREDNESS: Given the difficulty of importing ammunition during wartime, the Ministry of National Defense said it would prioritize ‘coproduction’ partnerships
A newly formed unit of the Marine Corps tasked with land-based security operations has recently replaced its aging, domestically produced rifles with more advanced, US-made M4A1 rifles, a source said yesterday. The unnamed source familiar with the matter said the First Security Battalion of the Mari
A total of 1,624 illegal accommodations were reported last year, with fines totaling about NT$120.13 million (US$3.8 million), the Tourism Administration said. The agency recently released last year’s statistics, and said that the inspections of accommodation facilities — hotels and guesthouses — sh
At least 192 protesters have been killed in Iran’s biggest movement against the Islamic republic in more than three years, a rights group said yesterday, as warnings grew that authorities were committing a “massacre” to quell the demonstrations. The protests, initially sparked by anger over the risi
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s sister has demanded a detailed “explanation” from Seoul over a drone it accused South Korea of flying over its territory, state media reported yesterday. The North said on Saturday that a craft crossed from the South Korean border county of Ganghwa into the North Ko
SMART LIVING: The government’s 10-year AI development initiative aims to build an AI innovation system and create circles that integrate AI across all aspects of life, Lai said
The government has set a goal of cultivating 500,000 artificial intelligence (AI) professionals by 2040 and plans to inject NT$100 billion (US$3.17 billion) into a venture capital fund to achieve it, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday at an AI talent forum in Taipei.“AI changing the world is
Eligibility for government-funded influenza antiviral drugs would be expanded from Jan. 20 to Feb. 28 to include seven groups considered to be at higher risk of spreading the virus, as the flu is predicted to enter an epidemic period at the end of the month, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) sai
Pope Leo XIV, leader of the Holy See, Taiwan’s sole diplomatic ally in Europe, during his annual New Year’s address on Friday expressed concern over rising tensions in East Asia and called for peaceful dialogue.The New Year’s audience is considered a cornerstone of Vatican diplomacy, during which th
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is considering calling a general election in the coming weeks to capitalize on strong public support for her government, media reports said yesterday.Takaichi became Japan’s first female prime minister in October last year, and her Cabinet is enjoying an approv
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