BACKLASH: The projected results come as voters are increasingly skeptical of the prime minister’s approach to the sluggish economy and party corruption scandals
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s coalition lost its upper house majority in elections yesterday, local media projected, in a result that could end his premiership.Ishiba’s governing coalition was already humiliatingly forced into a minority government after lower house elections in October l
Student enrollment across all age levels last year fell by 273,000 compared with five years ago, although participation in experimental education grew by 50 percent, Ministry of Education (MOE) data showed. The decline, which accounts for 6.4 percent fewer students compared with 2019, was likely due
Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) yesterday expressed gratitude to France for stating its commitment to preserving peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, and opposing any unilateral change to the “status quo” in France’s Indo-Pacific Strategy report released on Friday.In the first s
Rescuers searched desperately yesterday for four people still missing after at least 35 were killed when a boat capsized at one of Vietnam’s most popular tourist destinations.The tourist boat ferrying families around Vietnam’s famed Ha Long Bay was lashed by a sudden storm on Saturday in one of the
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said.Hsu made the an
AUKUS: The Australian Ambassador to the US said his country is working with the Pentagon and he is confident that submarine issues will be resolved
Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd on Friday said that if Taiwan were to fall to China’s occupation, it would unleash China’s military capacities and capabilities more broadly.He also said his country is working with the Pentagon on the US Department of Defense’s review of the AUKUS submarin
National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) President Wu Cheng-chi (吳正己) and the university’s women’s soccer team coach Chou Tai-ying (周台英) yesterday issued a formal apology over a controversial research project that allegedly involved coerced blood draws from students.The university is at fault for th
US President Donald Trump on Friday sued media magnate Rupert Murdoch and the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) for at least US$10 billion Friday over the publication of a bombshell article on his friendship with the infamous alleged sex trafficker of underage girls, Jeffrey Epstein.The defamation lawsuit,
Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa yesterday urged Sunni Muslim Bedouin groups to “fully commit” to a ceasefire aimed at ending clashes with Druze-linked militias that have left hundreds dead and threatened to unravel the country’s post-war transition.This comes as government forces, initially sent to
PREPAREDNESS: The longest-ever Han Kuang drills featured unscripted live-fire drills across diverse battle spaces, transitioning from beachhead combat to in-depth defense
Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) yesterday praised Taiwanese troops for their work over the past 10 days, as the longest-ever live-fire component of Taiwan’s annual military exercises concluded early yesterday.In a teleconference to the armed forces, Koo officially announced the end
The Central Election Commission (CEC) yesterday approved recall vote proposals against five more Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers, bringing the total number of recall elections to 31.Voting on the five lawmakers — Lo Ming-tsai (羅明才), Yan Kuan-heng (顏寬恒), Yang Chiung-ying (楊瓊瓔), Johnny Chian
AMENDMENTS: The changes follow outrage over the 2023 death of a one-year-old boy, who was allegedly tortured to death by his caregiver
The Legislative Yuan yesterday passed amendments to the Criminal Code allowing the death penalty in cases of child abuse resulting in the death of a child aged seven or younger. The amendments also mandate a sentence increase by half for murder when the victim is seven or younger. The changes follow
The US House of Representatives gave final approval to US President Donald Trump’s request to claw back about US$9 billion for public broadcasting and foreign aid early yesterday, as Republicans intensified their efforts to target institutions and programs they view as bloated or out of step with th
Renewed clashes broke out on Thursday night between Druze armed groups and members of Bedouin clans in southern Syria, and government forces were preparing to deploy again to the area yesterday after pulling out under a ceasefire agreement earlier this week, officials said.Government security forces
INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT: The Guatemalan Congress this year passed resolutions urging the UN to recognize Taiwan’s right to participate in multilateral institutions
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday thanked Guatemalan Congress President Nery Abilio Ramos y Ramos for his country’s continued support for Taiwan’s participation in international bodies.Lai and Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) met with Ramos and his delegation yesterday morning at
NOT ENOUGH: The opposition said the government has a NT$1.8 trillion surplus, but the majority of that money has already been allocated, the premier said
The government would have to issue NT$101.4 billion (US$3.45 billion) in debt to implement the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) proposed universal NT$10,000 cash handouts, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday, calling the scheme morally and financially questionable given the state of the natio
Taiwanese armed forces yesterday simulated an enemy advance into the Taipei area after a successful landing, while defending units practiced “hot refueling” helicopters on the ninth day of the Han Kuang exercises.Most of yesterday’s training units were concentrated in northern Taiwan, with exercises
Syrian Interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa yesterday accused Israel of trying to fracture Syria and promised to protect its Druze minority, after a US intervention helped end deadly fighting between government forces and Druze fighters in the south.Overnight, the Islamist-led government’s troops withd
South Korea’s top court yesterday cleared Samsung Electronics chairman Jay Y. Lee of accounting fraud and stock manipulation, permanently removing a long-running legal risk for the head of the country’s biggest company.The Supreme Court upheld an appeals court’s ruling dismissing all charges in the
RSS