The fact that Taiwan has remained off a US list of major drug-producing or drug-trading countries for six consecutive years shows that the nation's fight against narcotics has garnered international recognition, Pres-ident Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) said yesterday.
Chen was referring to the 2006 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report released in March by the US State Department. He made the remarks in a written address to a national anti-drug conference held by the Executive Yuan.
Chen said that drug abuse and its accompanying crime can seriously undermine a country's image, competitiveness and public order.
While many new drugs have appeared in recent years, drug users and drug traffickers are starting at a younger age and the ratio of repeat and serial offenders is also rising in Taiwan, Chen said.
Also, needle-sharing among drug users has accelerated the spread of HIV, he said.
To promote a national campaign against narcotics, the Executive Yuan has made anti-drug operations a major part of its measures to improve the country's law and order, has worked out a program aimed at reducing the hazards of narcotics and AIDS and has declared last year through 2008 "years of national combat against narcotics," Chen said.
Meanwhile, the Executive Yuan has adopted four strategies, including drug prevention, drug rejection, drug withdrawal and a crackdown on drugs, and holds regular briefings on drug control and prevention, he said.
The president urged the private sector to continue to work with the government to achieve the goal of making Taiwan a drug-free country.
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