With Taiwan's diplomatic corps expected to witness an unprecedented personnel reshuffle beginning in late October, analysts said yesterday that the move was necessary if Taiwan's depleting diplomatic force were to be fully replenished.
"Such a large-scale reshuffle is a must," said Teng Chung-chian (
Responding to reports that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was to start a large-scale reshuffle soon, foreign minister Tien Hung-mao (
"We definitely need capable and experienced diplomats in their 50s to go and work in EU countries in order to open a new stage in Taiwan's ties with the EU, which has become one of the major focuses of President Chen Shui-bian's (
Taiwan's representative offices in Italy, France, Belgium, Austria, the Netherlands and Germany are to see new heads at the ambassador level, said foreign ministry officials, who refused to be named.
Over half of the foreign ministry's director-generals in charge of regional affairs will be involved in the reshuffle, MOFA officials said.
Tien held a confidential meeting two weeks ago in Hsinchu with these director-generals to appraise their general understanding of regional affairs and to ascertain whether they would be willing to cooperate in the upcoming reshuffle, foreign ministry officials said.
Tien has stressed that ambassadors above the age of 68 would be encouraged to retire from their current posts, and that those who did not have strong experience in diplomatic affairs would top his list for replacement.
Seventy-one-year-old Hsia Tien (
Sixty-eight-year-old Chen Yu-chu (
Teng said the key consideration for the scholar-turned-foreign minister in carrying out the reshuffle was to seek "appropriate" diplomats capable of "realizing the foreign policy objectives" of the administration.
"Although age is one of the key variables, another major consideration is whether the prospective appointees can carry out the major objectives of the foreign ministry under the new administration," Teng said.
The removal of ageing ambassadors, of course, could allow younger talent from Taiwan's diplomatic corps to work in the front line, thus revitalizing the corps, Teng said.
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
One of two tropical depressions that formed off Taiwan yesterday morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. The weather system is expected to move northwest as it builds momentum, possibly intensifying this weekend into a typhoon, which would be called Mitag, Lee said. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is forecast to approach the southeast of Taiwan on Monday next week and pass through the Bashi Channel
NO CHANGE: The TRA makes clear that the US does not consider the status of Taiwan to have been determined by WWII-era documents, a former AIT deputy director said The American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) comments that World War-II era documents do not determine Taiwan’s political status accurately conveyed the US’ stance, the US Department of State said. An AIT spokesperson on Saturday said that a Chinese official mischaracterized World War II-era documents as stating that Taiwan was ceded to the China. The remarks from the US’ de facto embassy in Taiwan drew criticism from the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, whose director said the comments put Taiwan in danger. The Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday reported that a US State Department spokesperson confirmed the AIT’s position. They added that the US would continue to
The number of Chinese spouses applying for dependent residency as well as long-term residency in Taiwan has decreased, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday, adding that the reduction of Chinese spouses staying or living in Taiwan is only one facet reflecting the general decrease in the number of people willing to get married in Taiwan. The number of Chinese spouses applying for dependent residency last year was 7,123, down by 2,931, or 29.15 percent, from the previous year. The same census showed that the number of Chinese spouses applying for long-term residency and receiving approval last year stood at 2,973, down 1,520,
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