WEATHER
Temperatures stage rally
Daytime temperatures around the country went up by 4?C to 5?C yesterday as the low temperatures and rain that had people shivering in most areas over the past week gradually give way to drier and warmer weather, the Central Weather Bureau said. The more moderate spell of weather will likely last for four days before another cold front and a strong continental cold air mass are expected to reach the nation from the north on Wednesday, the bureau said. Today’s highs will exceed 20?C throughout the nation, and on Tuesday temperatures are likely to rise to about 25?C in northern and eastern areas and up to 28?C in the south, the bureau said. The next front is expected to last until Friday, bringing low temperatures, precipitation and possibly heavy rain to the north and the northeast, it said.
SOCIETY
Lee reveals surgery
Former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) revealed yesterday that he underwent surgery for skin cancer two weeks ago and is expected to be completely cured of the disease in a few months. Lee said on the sidelines of a book launch in Taipei yesterday he was diagnosed with skin cancer after inquiring about the scar above his upper lip. “These were cancer cells that had gone deep into the skin,” Lee said, adding that he had gone for a medical check after his family thought the spot was abnormal. Lee said the operation had removed all of the cancer cells and he expects to be in complete remission in a few months.
EDUCATION
Japanese students increase
An increasing number of Japanese have come to Taiwan to learn Mandarin or pursue other studies over the past decade, bucking a trend of decreasing interest in studying overseas among Japanese students. Citing data from the Japanese government, the Ministry of Education said that 30 percent fewer Japanese are going abroad for education than 10 years ago. However, the number of Japanese students at Taiwanese universities, particularly at Chinese learning centers, has increased over the same period, from fewer than 2,000 to more than 3,000. The famed hospitality of Taiwanese is a major draw, according to students. Since 2006, the ministry has been encouraging foreigners to join short-term Chinese language tours in Taiwan. There have been 198 such tours to date. As of the end of last year, 150,000 people had taken the Test of Chinese as a Foreign Language, a locally developed examination to determine the Chinese proficiency of non-native learners.
DIPLOMACY
Meteorology exchanges start
Taiwan and China are to begin official exchanges on meteorology and earthquake monitoring once the two sides ink cooperation pacts at a high-level meeting scheduled in Taipei later this month. The Straits Exchange Foundation and the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits are scheduled to hold the meeting from Feb. 26 to Feb. 28 at the earliest, during which they are to sign the separate agreements on meteorological cooperation and seismic monitoring. Pending legislative procedures, the agreements would see the Central Weather Bureau working formally with the China Meteorological Administration and China Earthquake Administration for the first time. Both sides will organize their own task forces and begin convening meetings on data sharing, personnel exchanges and technological cooperation, officials said.
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