Taiwan has expressed concern over China's plan to draw up an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) within the Taiwan Strait to submit to the International Civil Aviation Organization and pass on to other countries, the government said yesterday.
An ADIZ is an area of airspace usually along a national boundary within which identification of all aircraft is required for national security reasons.
President Chen Shui-bian (
Beijing is also planning to inaugurate a new air route on the Chinese side of the median of the Taiwan Strait, he said.
Chen made the remarks while meeting US Representative Eni Faleomavaega and American Institute in Taiwan Director Stephen Young at the Presidential Office on Thursday.
"We consider China's plans an attempt to alter the status quo in the Taiwan Strait. [China] will pose a great threat to peace and stability in the strait and damage the status quo. We hope the US and Japan will jointly tackle this serious issue," Chen said.
Asked by the press to elaborate, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday said: "We are very much concerned about the move because it will change the status quo, endanger cross-strait stability and affect international aviation safety."
The ministry declined to give futher details about Beijing's actions.
Taiwan will discuss the matter with other countries and seek their cooperation in taking measures to maintain cross-strait peace, the ministry said.
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Through analyzing fossil evidence, a research team at National Taiwan University (NTU) discovered the largest endemic bird to have lived in Taiwan, naming it Pavo miejue, or extinct peafowl (滅絕孔雀). The Mikado pheasant, which is printed on the back of the NT$1,000 bank note, was previously believed to be the biggest endemic bird to Taiwan. The research team’s findings suggest that Pavo miejue lived during the Pleistocene epoch tens of thousands of years ago. It is the first endemic extinct bird species discovered and formally named in Taiwan. The study was coauthored by NTU Institute of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology professor Tsai Cheng-hsiu (蔡政修),
Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport is to suspend its automated Skytrain service connecting Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 starting on July 1 to facilitate connection works for the upcoming Terminal 3, the airport operator said today. Passengers and staff who need to travel between the two terminals after the suspension can instead use the Taoyuan MRT or the airport's 24-hour shuttle bus service, Taoyuan International Airport Corp said. The Taoyuan MRT Airport Line directly links the two terminals, while the shuttle buses are to operate around the clock, the company added. The Skytrain provides free transportation between the airport’s two terminals for travelers and
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