The first batch of Harpoon missiles purchased from the US would be delivered around the end of this year to provide critical combat power for the Littoral Combatant Command (LCC), the navy said yesterday.Following the establishment of the LCC on Jan. 1, the first batch of the 400 Harpoon anti-ship
‘NOT REHABILITATIVE’: Caning would be a ‘step backwards’ for human rights in Taiwan and draw world condemnation, a DPP legislator said
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) last week sparked widespread discussion when he proposed that people convicted of fraud be caned as punishment.Hung in a Facebook post that started with “Singapore can. Can Taiwan?” cited a Straits Times report as saying that the Singapo
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy yesterday called for the delivery of an additional 25 US Patriot anti-missile batteries amid the rapidly escalating air war with Russia, as it became clear that US President Donald Trump had once again tacked sharply toward Moscow.He added that he would be rea
Bolivians on Sunday elected a pro-business center-right senator as their new president, ending two decades of socialist rule that left the South American nation deep in economic crisis.With 97.8 percent of ballots counted, Rodrigo Paz had 54.6 percent of the vote to 45.4 percent for his rival, right
COOPERATION: Taiwan is aligning closely with US strategic objectives on various matters, including China’s rare earths restrictions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said
Taiwan could deal with China’s tightened export controls on rare earth metals by turning to “urban mining,” a researcher said yesterday. Rare earth metals, which are used in semiconductors and other electronic components, could be recovered from industrial or electronic waste to reduce reliance on i
MAINTAINING DIGNITY: More Taiwanese are willing to make advance plans for the final stages of their lives, demonstrating concern for patient autonomy, an official said
Taiwan ranked first in Asia for hospice and palliative care, the World Map of Palliative Care released by a WHO collaborating center said. The report, released earlier this month by ATLANTES Global Observatory of Palliative Care at the University of Navarra in Spain, analyzed and compared the status
The combined effect of the monsoon, the outer rim of Typhoon Fengshen and a low-pressure system is expected to bring significant rainfall this week to various parts of the nation, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The heaviest rain is expected to occur today and tomorrow, with torrentia
Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and the Japan Innovation Party (JIP) have broadly agreed to form a coalition government, setting the stage for the country’s first female prime minister, Kyodo news agency reported yesterday. LDP President Sanae Takaichi and JIP leader Hirofumi Yoshimura are se
Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed to an “immediate ceasefire” at talks in Doha, after at least 10 Afghans were killed in Pakistani airstrikes that broke an earlier truce. For more than a week, the South Asian neighbors have engaged in bloody border clashes — their worst conflict since the return of th
Thieves wielding power tools robbed the Louvre yesterday, taking some of France’s priceless crown jewels in a brazen, seven-minute heist carried out in broad daylight, officials and sources said.Authorities recovered a 19th-century gem-encrusted crown -- damaged -- near the museum, but the culprit
‘TRUE PEACE’: Peace cannot be achieved through a single agreement, but through enhancing defenses to deter war and preparedness to avoid war, the president said
Peace is Taiwan’s goal, but it cannot be achieved through a single agreement, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that defending the Republic of China (ROC) must begin with safeguarding Taiwan, as the ROC can only exist if Taiwan exists.Lai made the remark in an address at a ceremony
UNITED: The other candidates congratulated Cheng on her win, saying they hoped the new chair could bring the party to victory in the elections next year and in 2028
Former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmaker Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) yesterday won the party’s chair election with 65,122 votes, or 50.15 percent of the votes.It was the first time Cheng, 55, ran for the top KMT post, and she is the second woman to hold the post of chair, following Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱)
Taiwan’s population has declined for 21 consecutive months, Ministry of the Interior data showed, with experts warning that the nation’s trend of aging population and low childbirth rate might be difficult to reverse.As of end of last month, the population was 23,317,031, which is 87,107 fewer than
The Chinese Communist Party is today to begin four days of key closed-door discussions, formulating core economic strategy for coming years as growth flags and trade headwinds mount.The gathering of the Central Committee would be crucial in determining policy objectives in the world’s second-largest
Afghan and Pakistani delegations were in Doha yesterday for talks on defusing the deadliest crisis between them in several years, after more than a week of fighting killed dozens of people and injured hundreds on both sides.Both governments sent their ministers of defense to lead the talks, which Pa
REFORM: The armed forces must embrace new training and equipment by integrating emerging techniques and technology, to transform military power, the president said
The nation’s armed forces would comprehensively enhance their combat capabilities, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday aboard the navy’s Tsoying (左營) destroyer, just hours after the conclusion of the military’s annual Hai Chiang (海強, “Sea Strong”) live-fire exercise near Taiwan proper.Lai was
PROJECTION: The institution said it expects inflationary pressure to ease in the second half of the year, but households could continue to feel the pinch from rising food prices
The Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) yesterday sharply raised its forecast for Taiwan’s economic growth this year to 5.45 percent, citing sustained global demand for semiconductors and artificial intelligence (AI)-related technologies.The upgrade from 3.05 percent in July
The Legislative Yuan yesterday passed a special budget bill aimed at bolstering economic, social and national security resilience that includes funding for a proposed NT$10,000 (US$326) cash handout to members of the public. The distribution of the cash handout is expected to begin early next month,
US President Donald Trump was to host Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy for talks at the White House yesterday, with Trump signaling he is not ready to agree to sell Kyiv a long-range missile system that the Ukrainians say they desperately need.The one-on-one comes a day after Trump and Russia
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