The Presidential Office yesterday dismissed Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Ma Ying-jeou's (
"Exactly when and where did he say anything to criticize China's Anti-Secession Law? We are very curious to know whether he can produce any evidence to prove his argument," said Presidential Office Deputy Secretary-General Cho Jung-tai (
Guts
Cho made the remarks in response to a comment made by Ma on Saturday. Ma said that he had the guts to stand up against China because he was the first Taiwanese official to voice opposition to China's Anti-Secession Law after the legislation was passed in March last year.
Cho said that in contrast to Ma's docility, President Chen Shui-bian (
"We'd like to know where Chairman Ma was during the course of time? Exactly what did he say to oppose the legislation and what message did he convey to China on behalf of the people of Taiwan?" Cho asked.
Reminder
Cho said that he wanted to remind the public that it was the opposition leaders who visited China after Beijing passed the Anti-Secession Law and the opposition parties who organized a march yesterday to denounce the president.
As Ma yesterday left for a visit to the the US, Cho called on Ma to refresh his memory on the efforts taken by the people of Taiwan to oppose the law and to truly recount the matter to the international community rather than producing a "political lie that will incur the ridicule of the international community."
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it