The Ministry of National Defense spokesman yesterday referred to a media report claiming that locally-built cruise missiles have secretly begun to be deployed on the island as a "sheer fabrication"
Ministry spokesman Liu Chih-chian (
The government has begun deploying home-made cruise missiles on mobile launchers that are capable of hitting major military targets in southeast China, a Chinese-language newspaper reported in Taipei yesterday.
The daily said the Hsiung Feng missiles, which have a range of 1,000km, were deployed nationwide by the ministry's new missile command.
The missiles, which cost about NT$100 million (US$3.13 million) each, were developed by the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology, the daily said.
The military-run institute was also developing cruise missiles with a range of 2,000km.
The newspaper said President Chen Shui-bian (
Taiwan reportedly successfully test-fired its first cruise missile earlier this year, which flew more than 500km before hitting its target.
The Pentagon released a report last month that warned that Beijing had deployed up to 730 ballistic missiles targeting Taiwan.
The report said Beijing's defense build-up could tip the military balance against Taiwan and pose a credible threat to other countries in the region.
In a bid to beef up defense capabilities, the Cabinet has approved a revised arms deal worth some US$15.5 billion for weapons from the US. Critics said the budget could further provoke China and heighten cross-strait tensions.
China has reserved offshore airspace in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea from March 27 to May 6, issuing alerts usually used to warn of military exercises, although no such exercises have been announced, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported yesterday. Reserving such a large area for 40 days without explanation is an “unusual step,” as military exercises normally only last a few days, the paper said. These alerts, known as Notice to Air Missions (Notams), “are intended to inform pilots and aviation authorities of temporary airspace hazards or restrictions,” the article said. The airspace reserved in the alert is
NAMING SPAT: The foreign ministry called on Denmark to propose an acceptable solution to the erroneous nationality used for Taiwanese on residence permits Taiwan has revoked some privileges for Danish diplomatic staff over a Danish permit that lists “Taiwan” as “China,” Eric Huang (黃鈞耀), head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Department of European Affairs, told a news conference in Taipei yesterday. Reporters asked Huang whether the Danish government had responded to the ministry’s request that it correct the nationality on Danish residence permits of Taiwanese, which has been listed as “China” since 2024. Taiwan’s representative office in Denmark continues to communicate with the Danish government, and the ministry has revoked some privileges previously granted to Danish representatives in Taiwan and would continue to review
More than half of the bamboo vipers captured in Tainan in the past few years were found in the city’s Sinhua District (新化), while other districts had smaller catches or none at all. Every year, Tainan captures about 6,000 snakes which have made their way into people’s homes. Of the six major venomous snakes in Taiwan, the cobra, the many-banded krait, the brown-spotted pit viper and the bamboo viper are the most frequently captured. The high concentration of bamboo vipers captured in Sinhua District is puzzling. Tainan Agriculture Bureau Forestry and Nature Conservation Division head Chu Chien-ming (朱健明) earlier this week said that the
The first bluefin tuna of the season, brought to shore in Pingtung County and weighing 190kg, was yesterday auctioned for NT$10,600 (US$333.5) per kilogram, setting a record high for the local market. The auction was held at the fish market in Donggang Fishing Harbor, where the Siaoliouciou Island-registered fishing vessel Fu Yu Ching No. 2 delivered the “Pingtung First Tuna” it had caught for bidding. Bidding was intense, and the tuna was ultimately jointly purchased by a local restaurant and a local company for NT$10,600 per kilogram — NT$300 ,more than last year — for a total of NT$2.014 million. The 67-year-old skipper
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