Several academics said yesterday that China's recent "energy diplomacy" has greatly narrowed Taiwan's diplomatic room for maneuver and harmed Taipei's diplomatic relations with its allies in Central and South America.
The academics were speaking in a seminar on China's energy strategic deployment and Taiwan's energy security.
Associate Professor Hsiang Chun (向駿) of the National Defense University said that China has played the role of a "world factory" in recent years, causing its demand for energy to skyrocket.
Beijing's "energy diplomacy" serves three purposes, Hsiang said. It helps China meet its own energy needs, but also aims at sharing risk with other oil-producing countries and upgrading its stature in the international community.
Hsiang said that China's expanding energy purchases in Central and South America will have a negative impact on Taiwan's relations with its diplomatic allies. Out of 26 countries that maintain diplomatic relations with Taiwan, 13 are in Central and South America.
Lai I-chung (
China dangles the carrot of its vast market before other countries and asks them to support China's position on Taiwan, and to block proposals related to Taiwan in international meetings, Lai said.
China's recent inroads into Central and South America will also squeeze Taiwan's maneuvering space, he said.
In addition, Taiwan depends heavily on energy imports, with more than 70 percent of its petroleum coming from the Middle East and 40 percent of its coal from China. If China bans its exports and applies pressure to Australia and Indonesia to divert coal to China from Taiwan, there will be major crisis in Taiwan's energy supply of energy, he said.
Professor Tsai Tung-chieh (
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
Democratic Progressive Party caucus chief executive Rosalia Wu, front, grabs the pennant in a dragon boat race hosted by Qu Yuan Temple in the Shuanghsi River in Taipei’s Beitou District yesterday.