President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday urged Washington to provide more assistance to Taiwan’s submarine program, which has seen little progress in the past 11 years.
During a meeting with American Institute in Taiwan Chairman Raymond Burghardt, Ma said he hoped the US would help Taiwan as it continues to pursue its submarine program through a combination of indigenous development and imports.
Ma expressed his affirmation of the stable relations between the two nations in light of events since Burghardt’s last visit in September.
On collaborations in regional security, Ma said that Taiwan’s efforts include US$18.3 billion worth of US weapons imports. The US government last year also signed into law the Naval Vessel Transfer Act of 2013 that made possible the sale of two Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigates to Taiwan.
The sale of the frigates underline the importance of Taiwan’s security in the eyes of the US government, he said.
The president said he was delighted to see trade being fostered between Taiwan and the US, with the US last year surpassing Japan to become Taiwan’s second-largest trading partner. Over the same period, Taiwan also surpassed Saudi Arabia and India to become the US’ 10th-largest trading partner.
Ma thanked Washington for its support, and said that Taiwan’s chances of participating in the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership treaty are expected to improve as the trade bloc gains political traction.
The Trade and Investment Framework Agreement talks two years ago have made further dialogue possible and Taiwan will continue to seek to expand bilateral investment and collaborative efforts in electronic commerce with the US, Ma said.
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
WEATHER Typhoon forming: CWA A tropical depression is expected to form into a typhoon as early as today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, adding that the storm’s path remains uncertain. Before the weekend, it would move toward the Philippines, the agency said. Some time around Monday next week, it might reach a turning point, either veering north toward waters east of Taiwan or continuing westward across the Philippines, the CWA said. Meanwhile, the eye of Typhoon Kalmaegi was 1,310km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, as of 2am yesterday, it said. The storm is forecast to move through central
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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