Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Pierre Pettigrew said on Thursday that the government opposes unilateral moves taken by either side of the Taiwan Strait that could change Taiwan's status, build up cross-strait tension and affect political stability and economic prosperity in East Asia.
Answering a question raised in the Canadian parliament by Don Boudria, a leader of the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance, who asked Pettigrew whether Canada was taking a similar stance to the US on Beijing's enactment of an "anti-secession" law targeting Taiwan, Pettigrew said that the content of the proposed law is still unknown, but he added that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would try to gain further information about the law once it is passed and publicized.
Boudria, who is also chairman of the parliamentarian Taiwan-Canada Friendship Association, said during a question-and-answer session that Washington has recently voiced its opposition to Beijing's enactment of the proposed law, which would provide Beijing with a legal basis to adopt "non-peaceful means" to resolve cross-strait problems if it thinks Taiwan is making moves toward independence.
Meanwhile, Stockwell Day, a spokesman for the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance, said that China's expected enactment of the "anti-secession" law reflected Beijing's attempts to invade Taiwan.
Day claimed that Taiwan's "allies," have expressed concern over a democracy being infringed upon by totalitarians, Canada should also render its support to Taiwan.
Alain Robert, known as the "French Spider-Man," praised Alex Honnold as exceptionally well-prepared after the US climber completed a free solo ascent of Taipei 101 yesterday. Robert said Honnold's ascent of the 508m-tall skyscraper in just more than one-and-a-half hours without using safety ropes or equipment was a remarkable achievement. "This is my life," he said in an interview conducted in French, adding that he liked the feeling of being "on the edge of danger." The 63-year-old Frenchman climbed Taipei 101 using ropes in December 2004, taking about four hours to reach the top. On a one-to-10 scale of difficulty, Robert said Taipei 101
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
Taiwanese and US defense groups are collaborating to introduce deployable, semi-autonomous manufacturing systems for drones and components in a boost to the nation’s supply chain resilience. Taiwan’s G-Tech Optroelectronics Corp subsidiary GTOC and the US’ Aerkomm Inc on Friday announced an agreement with fellow US-based Firestorm Lab to adopt the latter’s xCell, a technology featuring 3D printers fitted in 6.1m container units. The systems enable aerial platforms and parts to be produced in high volumes from dispersed nodes capable of rapid redeployment, to minimize the risk of enemy strikes and to meet field requirements, they said. Firestorm chief technology officer Ian Muceus said
MORE FALL: An investigation into one of Xi’s key cronies, part of a broader ‘anti-corruption’ drive, indicates that he might have a deep distrust in the military, an expert said China’s latest military purge underscores systemic risks in its shift from collective leadership to sole rule under Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), and could disrupt its chain of command and military capabilities, a national security official said yesterday. If decisionmaking within the Chinese Communist Party has become “irrational” under one-man rule, the Taiwan Strait and the regional situation must be approached with extreme caution, given unforeseen risks, they added. The anonymous official made the remarks as China’s Central Military Commission Vice Chairman Zhang Youxia (張又俠) and Joint Staff Department Chief of Staff Liu Zhenli (劉振立) were reportedly being investigated for suspected “serious
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