The military will strengthen its air and sea patrols in the lead-up to Saturday's election while keeping a close eye on China's ballistic missile and submarine deployments, the Ministry of National Defense announced yesterday.
"The armed forces will stay on alert around the clock during the election period. This is aimed at providing a secure and stable environment for the public to cast their votes on the election day," ministry spokesman Major General Huang Suei-sheng (黃穗生) said at a weekly press conference yesterday.
"Election day has been declared a day for `focused alert.' Our focus on that day and days before will be on air and sea patrols. Check and identification of targets is to be one of the priority tasks," Huang said.
"There is no sign to show that the Chinese military has any unusual deployments across the Taiwan Strait. But we will keep a close watch on the Chinese military, especially its ballistic missile and submarine forces," he said.
"The ministry has already in place rapid-response plans for any unusual deployments of the ballistic missile and submarine forces of the Chinese military," he said.
Huang, however, played down the significance of a joint Sino-French military exercise held off the coast of Qingdao, Shandong Province, yesterday.
"Two French warships were at Qingdao between March 12 and March 16 for a visit. The two ships then participated in an exercise with the Chinese navy," Huang said.
"The exercise is on maritime search and rescue, falling into the category of humanitarian aid. It is a basic and entry-level maneuver," he said.
The arrival of the French warships in the region coincided with the presence of the USS Kitty Hawk in the waters between China and Taiwan earlier this month. The ministry has declined to comment on the motives behind the Kitty Hawk presence.
However, the aircraft carrier's presence carries strong indications that the US does not want to see any conflict break out between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait at this moment.
Huang confirmed media reports that the military police has already deployed the Avenger pedestal-mounted Stinger anti-aircraft missile in Taipei. The Stinger is among the best man-portable surface-to-air missile in the world.
"The deployment started in December. It was part of the normal arms build-up," Huang said, declining to connect it with the election.
Yesterday was the first time the ministry made public its security plans for the election and officials appeared confident of providing a secure environment for election day.
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
COOLING OFF: Temperatures are expected to fall to lows of about 20°C on Sunday and possibly 18°C to 19°C next week, following a wave of northeasterly winds on Friday The Central Weather Administration (CWA) on Sunday forecast more rain and cooler temperatures for northern Taiwan this week, with the mercury dropping to lows of 18°C, as another wave of northeasterly winds sweeps across the country. The current northeasterly winds would continue to affect Taiwan through today, with precipitation peaking today, bringing increased rainfall to windward areas, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said. The weather system would weaken slightly tomorrow before another, stronger wave arrives on Friday, lasting into next week, Liu said. From yesterday to today, northern Taiwan can expect cool, wet weather, with lows of 22°C to 23°C in most areas,
Taiwan sweltered through its hottest October on record, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, the latest in a string of global temperature records. The main island endured its highest average temperature since 1950, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng said. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change contributes to ever more erratic weather patterns. Taiwan’s average temperature was 27.381°C as of Thursday, Liu said. Liu said the average could slip 0.1°C by the end of yesterday, but it would still be higher than the previous record of 27.009°C in 2016. "The temperature only started lowering around Oct. 18 or 19
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