The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) passed the agenda yesterday for its year-end national congress at which President Chen Shui-bian (
In the party's weekly Central Standing Committee meeting yesterday, Deputy Secretary-General Lee Ying-yuan (
The congress will feature a campaign rally to boost the DPP flag bearer's chances.
Immediately after the congress' campaign inauguration, the party will hold a massive campaign gala in the Hsinchuang Sports Stadium in Taipei County.
Chen's running mate is expected to make a speech on the occasion.
Though the DPP continued to play down the issue of Chen's running mate, it is widely believed that Vice President Annette Lu (
Commenting on the Cabinet's newly unveiled five-year, NT$500 billion public construction package, which aims to borrow money using a special budget, Chen said yesterday the projects are not intended to leave debt to future generations but to invest in the nation's offspring.
The "New 10 Key Infrastructure Projects" is named after the "10 Key Infrastructure Projects" initiated by the late Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) president Chiang Ching-kuo (
Chen said the program differs from its predecessor in that the old one focused on major infrastructure projects when Taiwan was in economic difficulty in the 1970s, while the new one is aimed at elevating the country's cultural, environmental and living standards.
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday said it had deployed patrol vessels to expel a China Coast Guard ship and a Chinese fishing boat near Pratas Island (Dongsha Island, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. The China Coast Guard vessel was 28 nautical miles (52km) northeast of Pratas at 6:15am on Thursday, approaching the island’s restricted waters, which extend 24 nautical miles from its shoreline, the CGA’s Dongsha-Nansha Branch said in a statement. The Tainan, a 2,000-tonne cutter, was deployed by the CGA to shadow the Chinese ship, which left the area at 2:39pm on Friday, the statement said. At 6:31pm on Friday,
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, would pose a steep challenge to Taiwan’s ability to defend itself against a full-scale invasion, a defense expert said yesterday. Institute of National Defense and Security Research analyst Chieh Chung (揭仲) made the comment hours after the PLAN confirmed the carrier recently passed through the Taiwan Strait to conduct “scientific research tests and training missions” in the South China Sea. China has two carriers in operation — the Liaoning and the Shandong — with the Fujian undergoing sea trials. Although the PLAN needs time to train the Fujian’s air wing and
STRIKE: Some travel agencies in Taiwan said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group tours to the country were proceeding as planned A planned strike by airport personnel in South Korea has not affected group tours to the country from Taiwan, travel agencies said yesterday. They added that they were closely monitoring the situation. Personnel at 15 airports, including Seoul’s Incheon and Gimpo airports, are to go on strike. They announced at a news conference on Tuesday that the strike would begin on Friday next week and continue until the Mid-Autumn Festival next month. Some travel agencies in Taiwan, including Cola Tour, Lion Travel, SET Tour and ezTravel, said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group
RSS