The US on Saturday congratulated the people of Taiwan for holding successful Legislative Yuan elections, but stopped short of congratulating the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) for its victory, in a brief statement issued some hours after the results were announced in Taipei.
In a largely boilerplate statement that echoed similar comments issued after previous elections, the State Department said, "The United States congratulates the people of Taiwan for a successful and democratic election, and we are looking forward to the continued close and unofficial relationship with Taiwan."
The department made no comment on the two referendums that failed to gain approval, but sources said that the administration must be pleased that they failed, in view of Washington's hostility to the planned presidential election-day referendum on entry into the UN under the name Taiwan.
The administration "must be rubbing their hands with some glee" that the two referendums drew less than the 50 percent participation rate needed for adoption, one source speculated.
The feeling is that the failure of the referendums, which repeated the experience of the two national security referendums in 2004, might presage a similar fate for the UN referendum.
The referendum plan has soured relations between the US administration and President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) government over the past year.
One observer noted the significance of the phrase, "continued close" relations, used by the State Department.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
Taiwan sweltered through its hottest October on record, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, the latest in a string of global temperature records. The main island endured its highest average temperature since 1950, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng said. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change contributes to ever more erratic weather patterns. Taiwan’s average temperature was 27.381°C as of Thursday, Liu said. Liu said the average could slip 0.1°C by the end of yesterday, but it would still be higher than the previous record of 27.009°C in 2016. "The temperature only started lowering around Oct. 18 or 19
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