President-elect Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday reiterated her stance on the issue of sovereignty over the South China Sea, saying that she declined to send an envoy to join President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) visit to Itu Aba Island (Taiping Island, 太平島) out of respect for the constitutional system, in response to criticism from the president.
Immediately after his return from the one-day trip to the island on Thursday, Ma panned Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chao Tien-lin (趙天麟) over his remarks that the president should not take a trip to such a sensitive area in such a sensitive time, saying that the DPP is holding him back while he tried to defend Taiwan’s sovereignty over the island, adding that he was surprised that the DPP would not send an envoy.
“We have said several times that the DPP decided not to send anyone on the trip due to the constitutional system, because Ma is still the president and we respect any decision that he makes as president,” Tsai said after journalists asked her for a comment. “We would like to remind the president that he should face serious issues with a serious attitude; the way he commented on the issue is very inappropriate.”
Tsai said that she has not changed her stance on the South China Sea issue that Taiwan has sovereignty over the region, adding that the right to innocent passage whether with planes or ships should be protected.
“The disputes among claimants should be resolved through international laws and conventions,” Tsai said. “Most importantly, the disputes should be solved through peaceful means and all countries in the region, including Taiwan, have a shared responsibility to maintain regional peace and stability.”
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
Taiwan's Gold Apollo Co (金阿波羅通信) said today that the pagers used in detonations in Lebanon the day before were not made by it, but by a company called BAC which has a license to use its brand. At least nine people were killed and nearly 3,000 wounded when pagers used by Hezbollah members detonated simultaneously across Lebanon yesterday. Images of destroyed pagers analyzed by Reuters showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo. A senior Lebanese security source told Reuters that Hezbollah had ordered 5,000 pagers from Taiwan-based Gold Apollo. "The product was not
COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai