PRESSURE: Ishiba had previously insisted on staying, stressing the need to avoid a political vacuum at a time when Japan faces major challenges including US tariffs
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba yesterday announced that he would step down following growing calls from his party to take responsibility for a historic defeat in July’s parliamentary election. Ishiba, who took office in October last year, had resisted demands from mostly right-wing opponents
A veteran US senator who visited Taiwan last month has issued a warning to the US and the world about the consequences they would face if China annexed Taiwan. “A conquered Taiwan would mean widespread loss of life and liberty for its people. It would also plunge the world into an economic depressio
Taiwan’s women’s 500kg team yesterday defeated Switzerland to win gold at the World Tug-of-War Championships in Nottingham, England, securing their fourth consecutive title since 2022. The championships ran from Thursday through yesterday, with the first two days featuring the open tournament. In th
Russia fired its biggest-ever aerial barrage at Ukraine early yesterday, killing two people and setting the seat of the Ukrainian government in Kyiv ablaze in an attack Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned would prolong the war. An Agence France-Presse (AFP) reporter saw the roof of Ukrain
RESPONSE: The transit sends a message that China’s alignment with other countries would not deter the West from defending freedom of navigation, an academic said
Canadian frigate the Ville de Quebec and Australian guided-missile destroyer the Brisbane transited the Taiwan Strait yesterday morning, the first time the two nations have conducted a joint freedom of navigation operation.The Canadian and Australian militaries did not immediately respond to request
ENERGY: The legislation would require the US to increase LNG exports to Taiwan and work with Taipei to strengthen its energy infrastructure through security measures
Two US senators on Friday introduced a bipartisan bill aimed at boosting liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports to Taiwan and strengthening its energy infrastructure amid China’s growing aggression. The Taiwan Energy Security and Anti-Embargo Act was sponsored by Republican Pete Ricketts and Democrat C
Permanent foreign residents would also be eligible to receive NT$10,000 (US$327) cash handouts, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday. Speaking to reporters at an event in Taipei, Cho said the Cabinet plans to submit a special budget proposal next week for legislative approval to unlock funding
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Friday shook up his Cabinet after his top deputy stepped down over a tax error on a home purchase, leaving a big hole in the center-left Labour government. Starmer carried out a major reshuffle, a forced government reboot after a rocky 14 months in office that
US President Donald Trump on Friday created a blacklist of countries that Washington says unjustly detain Americans, spelling out harsh punishments including bans on travel. In an executive order, Trump said the US would designate “state sponsors of wrongful detention,” similar to the powerful tool
‘NOT ALONE’: A Taiwan Strait war would disrupt global trade routes, and could spark a worldwide crisis, so a powerful US presence is needed as a deterrence, a US senator said
US Senator Deb Fischer on Thursday urged her colleagues in the US Congress to deepen Washington’s cooperation with Taiwan and other Indo-Pacific partners to contain the global security threat from China.Fischer and other lawmakers recently returned from an official trip to the Indo-Pacific region, w
The Taipei District Court yesterday granted bail to former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and Taipei City Councilor Angela Ying (應曉薇), after the completion of cross-examinations in the Core Pacific City corruption case.The two were granted bail of NT$70 million (US$2.29 million) and NT$30 million resp
Broadcom Inc is helping OpenAI design and produce an artificial intelligence (AI) accelerator, getting into a lucrative sphere dominated by Nvidia Corp.The two firms plan to ship the first chips in that lineup starting next year, a person familiar with the matter said.OpenAI would initially use the
The Lebanese government yesterday was discussing an army plan to disarm Hezbollah, which the Iran-backed militant group said plays into the hands of Israel and the US.Last month, under heavy US pressure and fearing Israel would intensify its strikes, Lebanon’s government ordered the army to draw up
READINESS: South Korea, Japan and the US said they are to conduct defensive drills on Sept. 15 to upgrade the countries’ capabilities against Pyongyang’s missile threats
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un told Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) that it was his “steadfast will” to “steadily develop” bilateral relations, state media said yesterday.The two leaders held talks on Thursday evening at the Great Hall of the People, where Kim affirmed the “friendly feelings” be
TENANCY: The Stable Housing Plan would ensure that 20 percent of social housing is allocated to families with young children and newlywed couples, an official said
The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a suite of measures aimed at making housing more affordable for young families and offering flexible parental leave.The policies include the “Stable Housing Plan” to provide more social housing for newlyweds and parents of preschoolers, as well as protections fo
TRUCK SYSTEMS: In a separate military procurement, the air force has NT$4.9 billion to purchase missile launcher trucks and 11 other items across six years
The army has placed an order with the US for thousands of FIM-92 Stinger missiles worth NT$11.02 billion (US$358.91 million) on top of a previous order by the Ministry of National Defense for 2,621 Stinger systems for NT$69 billion, a military source said yesterday.The army ordered the missiles to i
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications yesterday defended its efforts to improve traffic safety after a report by a German news firm advised international travelers to think twice before visiting Taiwan, saying that road deaths were higher than the number of people killed (the US officia
A suspected attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels yesterday targeted a ship in the Red Sea, officials said, as the militants increase their missile fire targeting Israel.The attack off the coast of Hodeida, Yemen, follows an Israeli strike last week that killed the militant group’s prime minister along wi
The US and Panama are urging the UN Security Council to authorize a 5,550-member force with the power to detain gang members in Haiti to help stop the escalating violence.The two countries outlined their proposal to transform the Kenya-led multinational deployment in the Caribbean nation into a much
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