CRIME
DPP HQ burgled ‘at random’
Cho Jun-ki, the South Korean national suspected of breaking into Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) headquarters, was unaware of the building’s political affiliation, Criminal Investigation Bureau officials said yesterday. Cho allegedly stole NT$90,000 from the DPP’s offices earlier this month. The Chinese-language Apple Daily said he might be an international spy given that he had targeted the China Affairs Department within the party’s headquarters. However, the bureau said that Cho picked the building at random after leaving the nearby Sheraton Grand Taipei Hotel, because it was the most eye-catching building in the area. After he got through security, Cho allegedly went to the eighth floor, where he looked inside drawers, but did not tamper with any computers or electronic documents, the bureau said. There were no hard drives, USB sticks or electronic documents on Cho when he was apprehended. The suspect, who is now in prison, is wanted in several countries, including South Korea and the Philippines.
WEATHER
Storm heading to Philippines
A tropical storm has formed east of the Philippines, but is not expected to have any significant effect on Taiwan, the Central Weather Bureau said yesterday. However, its outer bands are to bring rainfall to Hualien and Taitung counties and areas in the south until tomorrow, the bureau said. The storm is expected to hit the Philippines before moving to Macau, which could begin to see the effects by Monday, the bureau said, adding that travelers to Macau and the Philippines are advised to be on the alert.
DEFENSE
Weapons aid stability: Tsai
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday said plans to build military aircraft and vessels would help maintain stability and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region. As a responsible stakeholder in regional security, Taiwan has been raising its investment in defense, strengthening its military capabilities and enhancing its information security, Tsai said while meeting a delegation led by US Representative Rob Wittman, who serves as chairman of the US House of Representatives Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee. Tsai expressed confidence that the values of freedom, democracy and human rights upheld by Taiwan and the US will continue to shape the future of the Asia-Pacific. Wittman said he was happy to see Taiwan’s efforts to ensure regional prosperity and regional development, and expressed his appreciation to Taiwan for its leadership in the Asia-Pacific region.
EDUCATION
MOU inked with Switzerland
Representative to Switzerland Gu Ruey-sheng (谷瑞生) on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with representatives from the University of Zurich (UZH), the Representative Office of Taiwan in Bern said. Gu represented the Ministry of Education in signing the MOU, Taiwan’s first research-study program in Switzerland, with UZH division of social and business psychology professor Klaus Jonas and Wolfgang Behr of the Istitute of Asian and Oriental Studies. The program is to involve a wide range of academic subjects, including culture, history, politics, cross-strait relations, environmental protection and sociology. It is a milestone in Taiwan Studies attracting greater international attention, Gu said. From next month to September 2019, the university is to schedule courses, lectures and academic activities about Taiwan, while employing academics from Taiwan and Europe, the office said.
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