The nation should cut long-standing defense ties with Singapore if the Southeast Asian nation's military expands relations with China, a DPP lawmaker said yesterday.
Singapore's relationship with Taiwan is unique because the country has a pact with Taiwan's military but does not have official diplomatic ties with the nation's government.
Countries that don't recognize Taiwan diplomatically usually don't have formal ties with its military.
The defense agreement has allowed tiny Singapore -- which has limited space for military training -- to send some of its forces to Taiwan for exercises.
But the deal should end if Singapore decides to train some of its troops in China's tropical island province of Hainan, said Lin Chin-hsing (
The lawmaker said Singapore's interest in Hainan is commonly known by the Taiwanese military based in his southern legislative district, a popular training ground.
Lin said that Singapore shouldn't be allowed to use both Hainan and Taiwan because there would be a risk of secrets being leaked to China by visiting Singaporean forces.
The lawmaker said Taiwan should try to stop Singapore from switching to Hainan.
"I've told the government not just to pay attention to relations with America and Japan. We also need to pay attention to small nations, like Singapore," he told reporters.
The Taiwanese military spokesman's office declined to discuss the relationship with Singapore, and the Singaporean military did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
But in his memoirs, former Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew (
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
RSS