As Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin’s (郝龍斌) open opposition to the construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s (新北市) Gongliao District (貢寮) cast doubt on the stance of those in the pan-blue camp on nuclear issues, New Taipei City Mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫) yesterday said that he will meet with Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) next week to discuss the issue of nuclear power.
Chu, who heads the municipality where three of the nation’s nuclear power plants are located, has proposed absentee voting in the nuclear referendum, and accompanied President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) on a visit to a company in the city yesterday morning.
Chu said that he and Jiang regularly exchange views about the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant and said he will meet with the premier next week to continue their discussions.
Photo: Hung Juei-chin, Taipei Times
The Ma administration’s proposal to hold a national referendum on whether to halt construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant has been met with mounting criticism, not only from the opposition, but also from large swaths of the public who expressed their concerns over nuclear power during a number of recent anti-nuclear rallies held across the nation.
Hau’s open opposition to continuing construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant has thrown the spotlight onto other pan-blue figures’ stances on the issue.
Chu yesterday dismissed Hau’s latest comments that he would vote to support suspension of construction of the plant if the referendum was held immediately, and said the real question should be whether the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant can operate safely.
“It is meaningless to talk about hypothetical questions because the referendum is not being held now. People are worried about the safety of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant, and the referendum would be unnecessary if the plant is not considered as safe,” he said.
When questioned by reporters, Chu refused to comment on whether he supported the suspension of construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant and insisted that the government should provide open and transparent information on the safety of the power plant to the public.
Hau is the first local government leader from the pan-blue camp to declare his stance on the nuclear issue by saying on Thursday that he would vote “yes” in a national referendum asking voters if construction and operation of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant should be halted.
His announcement prompted Ma to call him on Thursday night to discuss his stance on the issue. The president also met Hau on Friday evening at the Presidential Office to continue their discussions.
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
INCREASED CAPACITY: The flights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays would leave Singapore in the morning and Taipei in the afternoon Singapore Airlines is adding four supplementary flights to Taipei per week until May to meet increased tourist and business travel demand, the carrier said on Friday. The addition would raise the number of weekly flights it operates to Taipei to 18, Singapore Airlines Taiwan general manager Timothy Ouyang (歐陽漢源) said. The airline has recorded a steady rise in tourist and business travel to and from Taipei, and aims to provide more flexible travel arrangements for passengers, said Ouyang, who assumed the post in July last year. From now until Saturday next week, four additional flights would depart from Singapore on Monday, Wednesday, Friday
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday reported the return of large-scale Chinese air force activities after their unexplained absence for more than two weeks, which had prompted speculation regarding Beijing’s motives. China usually sends fighter jets, drones and other military aircraft around the nation on a daily basis. Interruptions to such routine are generally caused by bad weather. The Ministry of National Defense said it had detected 26 Chinese military aircraft in the Taiwan Strait over the previous 24 hours. It last reported that many aircraft on Feb. 25, when it spotted 30 aircraft, saying Beijing was carrying out another “joint combat
Taiwan successfully defended its women’s 540 kilogram title and won its first-ever men’s 640 kg title at the 2026 World Indoor Tug of War Championships in Taipei yesterday. In the women’s event, Taiwan’s eight-person squad reached the final following a round-robin preliminary round and semifinals featuring teams from Ukraine, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, the Basque Country and South Korea. In the finals, they swept the Basque team 2-0, giving the team composed mainly of National Taiwan Normal University students and graduates its second championship in a row, and its fourth in five years. Team captain
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