■ Security
S Korea to up Web defense
South Korea, home to the world's highest concentration of high-speed Internet users, said it is taking steps to guard against computer attacks ahead of the second anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist strikes on the US. "We are assuming that there is an increased likelihood of worms such as `Blaster' and `Sobig.F' being spread around the time of the 911 anniversary,'' the Ministry of Information said in a release. Seventeen out of every 100 South Koreans has a broadband connection, three times the rate of the US. On Friday, Minister of Information and Communication, Chin Dae-je, will host a meeting of the chief executives and related officials of the country's seven Internet service providers, representatives from Microsoft Corp and officials from computer security software makers. Following the meeting, the ministry will boost the number of staff at its Internet infringement center and operate an emergency response plan from Sept. 8 to 14.
■ Aerospace
Airbus hires 1,000 workers
Airbus SAS has hired 1,000 workers to help build its planned 555-seat A380 aircraft in Hamburg, Financial Times Deutschland reported, citing an unidentified company spokesman. Airbus plans to employ a total of 2,000 workers by 2007 in Hamburg to work on the A380, the German newspaper reported. An additional 2,000 jobs will be created at suppliers, it said. Airbus' A380 will surpass Boeing Co's 747 as the world's largest passenger jet when it starts service in 2006. The A380 will cost US$10.7 billion to develop. European governments are providing US$2.5 billion in loans to help fund the project, with other partners and suppliers pitching in US$3.1 billion. Airbus, based in Toulouse, France will contribute US$5.1 billion.
■ Aerospace
Boeing to review costs
Aerospace and defense giant Boeing is creating an independent team to review the costs of some of its biggest projects, finance director Mike Sears told the Financial Times newspaper on Monday. The team will review 10 of Boeing's 15 biggest projects in a bid bolster the company's performance. The decision comes amid questions over the company's handling of problems in its space and communications division, which eventually led to a 1.1 billion dollar charge that sent Boeing into the red, the report said. All of Boeing's divisions will face reviews by the new team. Sears told the paper that Boeing's launch and satellite business looks "positive because of the military demand, although pricing could change.
■ Chips
Intel to invest in Elpida
US chipmaking giant Intel has agreed to invest an extra US$23 million in Japanese chipmaker Elpida Memory to support production of Elpida's high-performance DRAM chips, the Japanese firm said yesterday. The fresh investment followed an agreement announced in June that Intel would invest US$100 million in Elpida, a joint venture between Japanese hi-tech giants NEC and Hitachi. "Elpida has been taking steps to improve its overall position to become a top-tier DRAM [dynamic random access memory] supplier and increase its market segment share," Yukio Sakamoto, president of Elpida, said in a statement. Elpida plans to use the investments to boost production of 300mm DRAM wafers to 15,000 per month from 3,000 at its plant in Hiroshima, western Japan, a company spokesman said.
NO-LIMITS PARTNERSHIP: ‘The bottom line’ is that if the US were to have a conflict with China or Russia it would likely open up a second front with the other, a US senator said Beijing and Moscow could cooperate in a conflict over Taiwan, the top US intelligence chief told the US Senate this week. “We see China and Russia, for the first time, exercising together in relation to Taiwan and recognizing that this is a place where China definitely wants Russia to be working with them, and we see no reason why they wouldn’t,” US Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told a US Senate Committee on Armed Services hearing on Thursday. US Senator Mike Rounds asked Haines about such a potential scenario. He also asked US Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lieutenant General Jeffrey Kruse
INSPIRING: Taiwan has been a model in the Asia-Pacific region with its democratic transition, free and fair elections and open society, the vice president-elect said Taiwan can play a leadership role in the Asia-Pacific region, vice president-elect Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) told a forum in Taipei yesterday, highlighting the nation’s resilience in the face of geopolitical challenges. “Not only can Taiwan help, but Taiwan can lead ... not only can Taiwan play a leadership role, but Taiwan’s leadership is important to the world,” Hsiao told the annual forum hosted by the Center for Asia-Pacific Resilience and Innovation think tank. Hsiao thanked Taiwan’s international friends for their long-term support, citing the example of US President Joe Biden last month signing into law a bill to provide aid to Taiwan,
China’s intrusive and territorial claims in the Indo-Pacific region are “illegal, coercive, aggressive and deceptive,” new US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo said on Friday, adding that he would continue working with allies and partners to keep the area free and open. Paparo made the remarks at a change-of-command ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii, where he took over the command from Admiral John Aquilino. “Our world faces a complex problem set in the troubling actions of the People’s Republic of China [PRC] and its rapid buildup of forces. We must be ready to answer the PRC’s increasingly intrusive and
STATE OF THE NATION: The legislature should invite the president to deliver an address every year, the TPP said, adding that Lai should also have to answer legislators’ questions The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday proposed inviting president-elect William Lai (賴清德) to make a historic first state of the nation address at the legislature following his inauguration on May 20. Lai is expected to face many domestic and international challenges, and should clarify his intended policies with the public’s representatives, KMT caucus secretary-general Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) said when making the proposal at a meeting of the legislature’s Procedure Committee. The committee voted to add the item to the agenda for Friday, along with another similar proposal put forward by the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP). The invitation is in line with Article 15-2