■ Japan
KDDI to start group chats
Japanese mobile-telephone operator KDDI will start a group-chat service later this year allowing five users to converse and share text messages and pictures, a report said yesterday. KDDI, Japan's second-biggest cellphone operator, will launch several phone models with the new function by the end of the year, with the service available on all models by early next year, the Asahi Shimbun said. The new mobile phones will use technology known as "push-to-talk" for group chatting, in which a user would press a button to open a conversation like when using a transceiver, it said. Others listen to it simultaneously, with a second member in the group pressing the talk button to carry the conversation on once the first person finishes, it said.
■ Canada
Car workers set to strike
The president of the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) union said on Saturday that labor talks with General Motors have left him pessimistic and a strike could follow if things don't improve. CAW president Buzz Hargrove has set a strike deadline for tomorrow at midnight. "On the major issues that face us, we have made absolutely no progress at all," Hargrove said. Under the CAW's pattern bargaining with the Big Three US automakers, the union reaches financial terms with one company, then demands the other two to accept the same deal. A deal was reached first with Ford Canada and matched by DaimlerChrysler, but General Motors is resisting. The company has said it especially doesn't like the pension deal set in the pattern bargaining. Hargrove said General Motors argues it has more than twice as many retirees as the other two companies, plus have more eligible within the next three years.
■ Germany
Porsche eyes VW majority
German luxury sportscar maker Porsche hopes to become the biggest shareholder in Volkswagen (VW), the German weekly Der Spiegel reported, following speculation that US billionaire Kirk Kerkorian wants to get in VW driver's seat. The head of Porsche, Wendelin Wiedeking, is working with US investment bank Merrill Lynch in its bid for a 20 percent stake in the world's fourth-largest car maker, Der Spiegel said in its edition that appears today. A VW spokesman refused to comment about "these speculations" while Porsche executives could not be reached for comment. Rumors surfaced on Thursday that the one-time Chrysler raider Kerkorian was looking to buy into the share capital of Europe's top car maker. Porsche wants to buy a fifth of VW common shares, which currently would be valued at about three billion euros (US$3.6 billion), the German weekly said, citing an unnamed banker involved in the matter.
■ France
Budget deficit addressed
French Finance Minister Thierry Breton said the budget deficit will dip below 3 percent of GDP this year and next year, conforming to limits set by EU rules. "France will respect its commitments" to the EU, Breton said at a press conference yesterday in Washington, after attending a meeting of the Group of Seven nations. He said he was open to enlarging the membership of the G7, which now comprises France, Italy, Germany, the UK, the US, Canada and Japan. Russia has been seeking membership.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft