President William Lai (賴清德), in his New Year’s Day address yesterday, urged the opposition parties to put national security before partisan politics and swiftly pass a NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.76 billion) special defense budget amid China’s “rising expansionary ambitions.”“As president, my position h
UNDER WAY: The contract for advanced sensor systems would be fulfilled in Florida, and is expected to be completed by June 2031, the Pentagon said
Lockheed Martin has been given a contract involving foreign military sales to Taiwan to meet what Washington calls “an urgent operational need” of Taiwan’s air force, the Pentagon said on Wednesday.The contract has a ceiling value of US$328.5 million, with US$157.3 million in foreign military sales
New birth subsidies offering NT$100,000 (US$3,181) per newborn that took effect yesterday would not be enough alone to boost the nation’s dramatically falling birthrate, an expert said.For last year through the end of October, 98,785 babies were born, down 20 percent from the previous year, Taiwan A
A fire ripped through a bar’s new year celebration in a Swiss Alpine resort less than two hours after midnight yesterday, with dozens of people feared dead and about 100 more injured, most seriously, police said.The Crans-Montana resort is best known as an international ski and golf venue, but overn
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said his administration was removing — for now — the US National Guard from Chicago, Los Angeles and Portland, Oregon, a move that comes after legal roadblocks held up the effort.“We will come back, perhaps in a much different and stronger form, when crime begi
President William Lai (賴清德) today said that Taiwan is determined to defend its sovereignty and boost defense in the face of China's rising ambition for expansion.The international community is watching to see whether Taiwanese possess the resolve to defend themselves, Lai said in his New Year speech
INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT: The drills, which Lai said posed significant risks to the region, were met with deep concern from around the world about the destabilizing exercises
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday thanked countries for expressing concern over the latest Chinese live-fire military drills held near Taiwan, including the EU, Australia, France, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, the Philippines and the UK.Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (
AI TECH WAVE: Strong demand from local suppliers supporting the construction and expansion of AI data centers boosted stocks greatly, an analyst said
Taiwan’s stock market yesterday closed out Taiwan’s stock market yesterday closed out the year at a historic high, with the benchmark TAIEX closing at 28,963.60 points on the final trading day of 2025.The index yesterday rose 256.47 points, or 0.89 percent, to set a new record, capping an annual gai
The legislature’s refusal to pass the Executive Yuan’s general budget has prevented the enactment of key bills that would benefit Taiwanese, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday.Writing in a Facebook post wishing people a happy new year, Lai urged the legislature to pass the budget, citing liv
Auckland rang in 2026 with a downtown fireworks display launched from New Zealand’s tallest structure, Sky Tower, making it the first major city to greet the new year at a celebration dampened by rain, while crowds in Taipei braved the elements to watch Taipei 101’s display.South Pacific countries a
The Russian Ministry of Defense yesterday published a video of a downed drone that it said Ukraine launched at Russian President Vladimir Putin’s residence in northwest Russia this week, a claim Kyiv has branded a “lie.”Moscow made the allegation shortly after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy
Taiwan is gearing up to celebrate the New Year at events across the country, headlined by the annual countdown and Taipei 101 fireworks display at midnight.Many of the events are to be livesteamed online. See below for lineups and links:TaipeiTaipei’s New Year’s Party 2026 is to begin at 7pm and run
Taiwan remained on high alert today after China staged massive military drills around the nation yesterday, keeping its emergency maritime response center running as it monitored Chinese naval maneuvers, the coast guard said.The exercises named "Justice Mission 2025" saw China fire dozens of rockets
The EU and several countries in East Asia, including Japan, South Korea and the Philippines, yesterday voiced concerns over the latest Chinese live-fire military drills held near Taiwan and urged restraint to avoid escalating tensions.In a statement yesterday, the European External Action Service, t
MIND GAMES: The defense ministry urged people not to be taken in by China’s cognitive warfare attempts, calling Chinese reports that a PLA drone flew near Taipei 101 false
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday urged unity as China’s latest large-scale military drills around Taiwan entered their second day, accusing Beijing of escalating regional tensions.“The Chinese Communist Party has continued to escalate military tension in the region, which is not the behavior of
CALLS FOR RESTRAINT: The PLA’s drills are an attempt by China to normalize military intimidation, IPAC said, as it urged its members to respond with urgency and unity
US President Donald Trump on Monday said he was “not worried” about China’s military exercises around Taiwan, while the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) and South Korea expressed concern about the operation.Trump was responding to reporters’ questions about the exercises at a joint news
Taiwan’s “cancer clock” sped up by 14 seconds in 2023, indicating a diagnosis every 3 minutes, 48 seconds, with lung cancer remaining the most commonly diagnosed cancer among men and women, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said yesterday, citing the Health Promotion Administration’s (HPA) latest c
Former Bangladeshi prime minister Khaleda Zia, who many believed would sweep elections next year to lead her country once again, died yesterday aged 80.The government declared three days of state mourning for the country’s first female prime minister, with vast crowds expected to attend her funeral
Saudi Arabia yesterday bombed Yemen’s port city of Mukalla after a weapons shipment from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) arrived for separatist forces in the war-torn country, and starkly warned that it viewed Emirati actions as “extremely dangerous.”The bombing followed days of tensions over the adv
‘IRRESPONSIBLE’: Beijing’s constant disruption of the ‘status quo’ in the Taiwan Strait has damaged peace, stability and security in the Indo-Pacific region, MOFA said
The Presidential Office yesterday condemned China’s launch of another military drill around Taiwan, saying such actions are a “unilateral provocation” that destabilizes regional peace and stability. China should immediately stop the irresponsible and provocative actions, Presidential Office spokeswo