China should prepare for military action over Taiwan following passage of the US’ Taiwan Travel Act, an editorial in China’s Global Times said yesterday.
China has to “strike back” against the US’ act, for example by pressuring the US in other areas of bilateral cooperation such as North Korea and Iran, said the paper, which is published by the Chinese Communist Party’s People’s Daily.
“The mainland must also prepare itself for a direct military clash in the Taiwan Strait. It needs to make clear that escalation of US-Taiwan official exchanges will bring serious consequences to Taiwan,” the editorial said. “This newspaper has suggested that the mainland can send military planes and warships across the Taiwan Straits middle line. This can be implemented gradually depending on the cross-straits [sic] situation.”
Photo: Screen grab from AIT’s Facebook page
Beijing was infuriated after US President Donald Trump on Friday last week signed the legislation that encourages the US to send senior US officials to Taiwan to meet their counterparts and vice versa.
Despite Beijing’s warnings, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) yesterday announced that US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Manufacturing Ian Steff arrived yesterday for a six-day visit to strengthen bilateral trade, commercial and investment relations, his first as deputy assistant secretary.
He is one of the officials responsible for executing the Trump administration’s plans to foster growth in US manufacturing jobs and investments, the AIT said.
The first US official to visit Taipei following the act’s enactment, Alex Wong (黃之瀚), deputy assistant secretary at the US State Department’s Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, on Wednesday night told an American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei banquet that the US commitment to Taiwan has never been stronger and that Taiwan was an inspiration to the rest of the Indo-Pacific region.
In other developments, the US Department of State on Wednesday reiterated that the US opposes any unilateral action that alters the “status quo” in the Taiwan Strait.
The US has a “deep and abiding interest in cross-strait peace and stability, so it welcomes steps to reduce tension and improve cross-strait relations,” a department spokesperson said when asked about China’s aircraft carrier passing through the Taiwan Strait on a routine exercise.
The Chinese carrier entered the Strait on Tuesday and left at about noon on Wednesday, Minister of National Defense Yen Teh-fa (嚴德發) said.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
Tropical Storm Fung-Wong would likely strengthen into a typhoon later today as it continues moving westward across the Pacific before heading in Taiwan’s direction next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. As of 8am, Fung-Wong was about 2,190km east-southeast of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving westward at 25kph and possibly accelerating to 31kph, CWA data showed. The tropical storm is currently over waters east of the Philippines and still far from Taiwan, CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said, adding that it could likely strengthen into a typhoon later in the day. It is forecast to reach the South China Sea
Almost a quarter of volunteer soldiers who signed up from 2021 to last year have sought early discharge, the Legislative Yuan’s Budget Center said in a report. The report said that 12,884 of 52,674 people who volunteered in the period had sought an early exit from the military, returning NT$895.96 million (US$28.86 million) to the government. In 2021, there was a 105.34 percent rise in the volunteer recruitment rate, but the number has steadily declined since then, missing recruitment targets, the Chinese-language United Daily News said, citing the report. In 2021, only 521 volunteers dropped out of the military, the report said, citing
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
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