DIPLOMACY
Thailand crisis monitored
The government yesterday said it is closely monitoring the situation in Thailand after the Thai military declared martial law in a bid to quell months of protests and tensions between the Thai government and opposition. “We are keeping close tabs on the situation in Thailand,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Anna Kao (高安) said. The ministry and Taiwan’s representative office in Thailand are prepared to take “response measures,” she added. “The representative office immediately launched an emergency response mechanism shortly after the announcement [of martial law] was made,” she said. She said that no Taiwanese have thus far been affected, but urged anyone visiting or residing in Thailand to be alert.
TRAVEL
Visa privileges expanded
Republic of China passport holders can enjoy visa-free entry or landing visas in 140 countries and territories after five more places extended such privileges, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Monday. The African countries of Togo, Cape Verde and the Union of the Comoros, as well as Papua New Guinea in Oceania have granted landing visas to Taiwanese, the ministry said. The British territory of Anguilla in the Caribbean has also begun allowing Taiwanese to stay for up to six months visa-free, the ministry said. The four countries and one territory are the latest on a now long list of visa-free or landing visa destinations for Taiwanese, including the US, Canada, the Schengen Area of Europe and Japan.
HEALTH
Chiu meets US counterpart
Minister of Health Chiu Wen-ta (邱文達) on Monday met with US Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius on the sidelines of the World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva, Switzerland, where the two talked about health issues in Taiwan. Chiu said after their 20-minute private meeting that he and his US counterpart had touched on Taiwan’s efforts to combat the recent resurgence of rabies and H7N9 avian flu. He also conveyed his appreciation for Sebelius’ long-term support for the nation’s participation in the WHA. Chiou Shu-ti (邱淑緹), director-general of the Health Promotion Administration and a member of the Taiwanese delegation, said she briefed Sebelius on campaigns to address obesity during the meeting. This is the sixth consecutive year in which Taiwan has received an invitation to attend the annual meeting of the top decisionmaking body of the WHO. The WHA began meeting on Monday and is set to run until Saturday in the Swiss city.
DIPLOMACY
New UK envoy appointed
Representative to Canada Liu Chih-kung (劉志攻) has been reassigned as top envoy to the UK, according to a statement issued by the Presidential Office. Liu, a career diplomat, is to replace Shen Lyu-shun (沈呂巡), who has been appointed representative to the US. It is not known when Liu will take up his new post. He has been serving as the representative to Canada since 2012 and previously worked as deputy secretary-general of the National Security Council and as the representative to the Czech Republic, among other posts. Liu has also served in diplomatic positions in the US, South Africa and Mongolia. Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Anna Kao (高安) declined to confirm Chinese-language media reports that Bruce Linghu (令狐榮達), director-general of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Los Angeles, will succeed Liu in Ottawa.
DIPLOMACY
Turkey condolences offered
The nation has expressed its condolences to Turkey over the mine explosion in the western Turkish province of Manisa that killed hundreds of miners last week, in what Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Recep Erdogan said was one of the country’s worst industrial disasters. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it would donate US$100,000 to help with Turkey’s relief efforts. Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Simon Ko (柯森耀) visited Turkey’s representative office on Monday to offer the condolences, according to a statement issued by the ministry. After the accident on Tuesday last week, the nation’s representative office in Turkey also offered the nation’s sympathy to the Turkish government. The coal-mine explosion killed at least 301 workers and injured scores, foreign media reported, citing local officials. It is believed to have been caused by an electrical fault, the reports said.
SOCIETY
Coffee taster wins
Coffee taster Liu Pang-yu (劉邦禹) beat 36 competitors from around the world at this year’s World Cup Tasters Championship in Melbourne, Australia, on Sunday, winning the contest aimed at selecting the world’s best “coffee taster.” Liu, 25, who ranked fourth the previous day, defeated American Amanda Juris to grab the championship by distinguishing the tastes of six out of eight sets of coffee varieties within 3 minutes, 48 seconds. Juris solved five puzzles in 3 minutes, 51 seconds. Speed, skill and accuracy in distinguishing the different specialties of coffees are the criteria used to decide the contest’s champion. The World Cup, held from Thursday last week to Monday, was attended by coffee tasters from 37 countries and areas.
Taiwan has received more than US$70 million in royalties as of the end of last year from developing the F-16V jet as countries worldwide purchase or upgrade to this popular model, government and military officials said on Saturday. Taiwan funded the development of the F-16V jet and ended up the sole investor as other countries withdrew from the program. Now the F-16V is increasingly popular and countries must pay Taiwan a percentage in royalties when they purchase new F-16V aircraft or upgrade older F-16 models. The next five years are expected to be the peak for these royalties, with Taiwan potentially earning
STAY IN YOUR LANE: As the US and Israel attack Iran, the ministry has warned China not to overstep by including Taiwanese citizens in its evacuation orders The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday rebuked a statement by China’s embassy in Israel that it would evacuate Taiwanese holders of Chinese travel documents from Israel amid the latter’s escalating conflict with Iran. Tensions have risen across the Middle East in the wake of US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran beginning Saturday. China subsequently issued an evacuation notice for its citizens. In a news release, the Chinese embassy in Israel said holders of “Taiwan compatriot permits (台胞證)” issued to Taiwanese nationals by Chinese authorities for travel to China — could register for evacuation to Egypt. In Taipei, the ministry yesterday said Taiwan
Taiwan is awaiting official notification from the US regarding the status of the Agreement on Reciprocal Trade (ART) after the US Supreme Court ruled US President Donald Trump's global tariffs unconstitutional. Speaking to reporters before a legislative hearing today, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said that Taiwan's negotiation team remains focused on ensuring that the bilateral trade deal remains intact despite the legal challenge to Trump's tariff policy. "The US has pledged to notify its trade partners once the subsequent administrative and legal processes are finalized, and that certainly includes Taiwan," Cho said when asked about opposition parties’ doubts that the ART was
If China chose to invade Taiwan tomorrow, it would only have to sever three undersea fiber-optic cable clusters to cause a data blackout, Jason Hsu (許毓仁), a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislator, told a US security panel yesterday. In a Taiwan contingency, cable disruption would be one of the earliest preinvasion actions and the signal that escalation had begun, he said, adding that Taiwan’s current cable repair capabilities are insufficient. The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC) yesterday held a hearing on US-China Competition Under the Sea, with Hsu speaking on
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