NATIONAL DEFENSE
Taipei site to be developed
A prime site in downtown Taipei where the air force headquarters used to be will be used for the development of a commercial complex, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. An inter-agency meeting on Wednesday approved a plan drafted by the Council for Economic Planning and Development for the 7.15 hectare site on Renai Road to be developed into a multipurpose business complex. The “city within a city” project, which will include hotels, a shopping mall, plaza and green spaces, is expected to generate NT$90 billion (US$3 billion) to NT$100 billion worth of business and 10,000 jobs. Officials who attended Wednesday’s meeting also agreed that part of the profits from the project will be allocated to the ministry. The Air Force Command Headquarters relocated to Taipei’s Dazhi District (大直) in October last year.
CROSS-STRAIT TIES
Museum director to visit
Shan Jixiang (單霽翔), director of the Palace Museum in Beijing, is scheduled to arrive in Taipei on April 18 on a five-day visit. He will stay in Taipei for two days before visiting the National Palace Museum’s southern branch in Chiayi, and then traveling to Greater Kaohsiung and Kinmen. National Palace Museum Director Feng Ming-chu (馮明珠) visited China in late January and talked with Shan about cooperation between the two museums. One of the major purposes of her visit was to discuss a loan of artifacts from China for an exhibition that will be held at the Taipei museum later this year on the artistic tastes of Emperor Qianlong (乾隆, 1711 to 1799). Shan is expected to confirm the items that will be loaned for the exhibition during his trip. Since the two museums began promoting exchanges and cooperation a few years ago, the Beijing museum has loaned several exhibits to its Taipei counterpart, including objects for an exhibition on Emperor Yongzheng (雍正, 1678 to 1735) in 2009.
ENVIRONMENT
Greener worship urged
The public is urged to adopt greener approaches to ancestor worship during the Tomb Sweeping holiday, as the traditional practices often result in substantial pollution, the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) said. It said various alternatives are being offered to dissuade people from burning “ghost money” for ancestors during the festival. Burning 1kg of “ghost money” can generate approximately 1.5kg of carbon dioxide emissions, the EPA said. The public is therefore urged to use the online platforms established by local governments for ancestor worship and to burn “ghost checks” instead of “ghost cash,” the EPA said, adding that people are also encouraged to purchase rice and fruit as a substitute for “ghost money.”
TRAVEL
Macedonia extends program
Macedonia has decided to continue its visa-free treatment for Republic of China citizens, which came into effect on Monday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Wednesday. The move extends the visa-free privileges for ROC passport holders for another five years, the ministry said in a statement. Macedonia first began granting Taiwanese visa-free privileges on April 1 last year for a one-year period, the ministry said. The renewal will continue to make it more convenient for Taiwanese traveling to Macedonia for business or tourism, the ministry said, welcoming the Balkan country’s decision. Taiwanese now enjoy visa-free treatment or landing visas from 132 countries and territories, the ministry said.
An increase in Taiwanese boats using China-made automatic identification systems (AIS) could confuse coast guards patrolling waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast and become a loophole in the national security system, sources familiar with the matter said yesterday. Taiwan ADIZ, a Facebook page created by enthusiasts who monitor Chinese military activities in airspace and waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast, on Saturday identified what seemed to be a Chinese cargo container ship near Penghu County. The Coast Guard Administration went to the location after receiving the tip and found that it was a Taiwanese yacht, which had a Chinese AIS installed. Similar instances had also
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
VIGILANCE: The military is paying close attention to actions that might damage peace and stability in the region, the deputy minister of national defense said The People’s Republic of China (PRC) might consider initiating a hack on Taiwanese networks on May 20, the day of the inauguration ceremony of president-elect William Lai (賴清德), sources familiar with cross-strait issues said. While US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s statement of the US expectation “that all sides will conduct themselves with restraint and prudence in the period ahead” would prevent military actions by China, Beijing could still try to sabotage Taiwan’s inauguration ceremony, the source said. China might gain access to the video screens outside of the Presidential Office Building and display embarrassing messages from Beijing, such as congratulating Lai
Four China Coast Guard ships briefly sailed through prohibited waters near Kinmen County, Taipei said, urging Beijing to stop actions that endanger navigation safety. The Chinese ships entered waters south of Kinmen, 5km from the Chinese city of Xiamen, at about 3:30pm on Monday, the Coast Guard Administration said in a statement later the same day. The ships “sailed out of our prohibited and restricted waters” about an hour later, the agency said, urging Beijing to immediately stop “behavior that endangers navigation safety.” Ministry of National Defense spokesman Sun Li-fang (孫立方) yesterday told reporters that Taiwan would boost support to the Coast Guard