Sun, Feb 22, 2026
Taiwan yesterday filed an application to the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) to self-declare the nation free of African swine fever (ASF), as no positive cases were detected over the past three months.The nation was recognized by the WOAH as an ASF-free country in May last year, but a ho
Taiwan is to open a space rocket research center by 2030 with the goal of achieving the capability to launch rockets domestically, the Taiwan Space Agency (TASA) said yesterday.The research center, which is to be built in Tainan’s Shalun Township (沙崙), would focus on subsystems, and component resear
ALLIANCES: New Delhi’s cooperation with Brasilia complements its other partnerships, which grant India access to advanced technologies and finance India and Brazil yesterday agreed to boost cooperation on critical minerals and rare earths, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said after talks in New Delhi with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.“The agreement on critical minerals and rare earths in a major step toward building resili
The US has barred a Chilean Cabinet minister and two other officials from being able to enter the country, part of a diplomatic rebuke over Chile’s trade ties with China, including a proposed undersea cable that could link them.US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday said the Chilean officials w
OPTIMISTIC: The DGBAS sharply upgraded its GDP growth estimate from 3.54 percent to 7.71 percent after the Taiwan-US trade agreement signing and given AI optimism The US imported more from Taiwan than China for the first time in decades, as US President Donald Trump’s tariffs reshape trade flows while a global boom in artificial intelligence (AI) fuels demand for tech products.US purchases of goods from China plunged almost 44 percent in December last year fr
Lithuania aims to better harness the economic potential of cooperation with Taiwan, while also restoring “normal diplomatic relations” with China, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda was quoted as saying on Thursday.“We are interested in normal diplomatic relations with China, but at the same time
DIFFERENT ISSUES: Experts say that the government and parties should not misunderstand or misconstrue the situation, with the negotiations already in hand A ruling by the US Supreme Court declaring US President Donald Trump’s global tariffs unconstitutional should boost Taiwan’s stock market when trading resumes tomorrow after the Lunar New Year holiday ends, an analyst said yesterday, while an academic warned that the government and political parties
A NEW ENTRY: The KMT will reportedly have its own version ready shortly for consideration, joining the oft-rejected DPP version and the TPP’s own proposal The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) has stated that it could have its version of the special defense budget readied by Feb. 24, listed for discussion by March 11 following elections of committee conveners and reviewed by the end of March.The KMT and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) have staunchly opp
President William Lai (賴清德) demonstrated post-Lunar New Year holiday home exercises along with Minister of Sports and Olympic gold medalist Lee Yang (李洋) in a video released by the Presidential Office yesterday.Encouraging the public to stay healthy by exercising regularly, especially after enjoying
DO THEY BITE IT? Cats have better memories than people might think, but their motivation is based entirely around the chance of getting fed Cats can remember the identity of the people who fed them the day before, Taipei-based veterinarians said on Friday, debunking a popular myth that cats have a short memory.If a stray does not recognize the person who fed them the previous day, it is likely because they are not carrying food and the
Taiwanese award-winning scale model artist Fan Cheng-pin (樊成彬) has taken his craft beyond the studio by volunteering to paint Taiwanese Army helicopters for public events.Fan’s most recent work featured an Army Black Hawk helicopter with “new power” and “new army” slogans and hawk emblems, showcased
People hold incense and pray with offerings in front of Taipei’s Kuanghwa Market yesterday. The fifth day of the Lunar New Year is traditionally about welcoming the God of Wealth, during which companies and shops set off firecrackers to celebrate their reopening and pray for good business in the new
Passengers board a ferry heading to Kaohsiung at Magong Port in Penghu County yesterday. More than 6,000 passengers are returning to Taiwan proper from the outlying islands of Penghu as the Lunar New Year holiday ends.
Latin America stands to benefit from President Donald Trump’s greater involvement, said Paraguay President Santiago Pena, who has emerged as one of the staunchest US allies in the region, as he also insisted on Paraguay’s ties to Taiwan. “When the new national security strategy came out and they sta
The Utah State Senate on Thursday unanimously passed a resolution supporting Taiwan’s participation in international organizations, as Taiwan donated US$200,000 to Washington State for flood recovery.The resolution was introduced by Utah State Senator Scott Sandall and also calls for stronger bilate
Like many of us who are mindful of our plastic consumption, Beth Gardiner would take her own bags to the supermarket and be annoyed whenever she forgot to do so. Out without her refillable bottle, she would avoid buying bottled water.“Here I am, in my own little life, worrying about that and trying
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi made his pitch this week that India can play a leading role in the artificial intelligence boom with a conference featuring tech stars from around the world. It suffered more than a few hitches.Nvidia Corp CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) dropped out after early promotion;
CONFUSION: Taiwan, Japan and other big exporters are cautiously monitoring the situation, while analysts said more Trump responses ate likely after his loss in court US trading partners in Asia started weighing fresh uncertainties yesterday after President Donald Trump vowed to impose a new tariff on imports, hours after the Supreme Court struck down many of the sweeping levies he used to launch a global trade war.The court’s ruling invalidated a number of tarif
To our readers:Due to the Lunar New Year holiday, from Sunday, Feb. 15, through Sunday, Feb. 22, the Taipei Times will have a reduced format without our regular editorials and opinion pieces. From Mondy to Thursday the paper will not be delivered to subscribers, but will be available for purchase at
With the Year of the Snake reaching its conclusion on Monday next week, now is an opportune moment to reflect on the past year — a year marked by institutional strain and national resilience. For Taiwan, the Year of the Snake was a composite of political friction, economic momentum, social unease an
There is a story in India about a boy called Prahlad who was an ardent worshipper of Lord Narayana, whom his father considered an enemy. His son’s devotion vexed the father to the extent that he asked his sister, Holika, who could not be burned by fire, to sit with the boy in her lap and burn him to
‘GAME OVER’: The US’ Elana Meyers Taylor and Jadin O’Brien had a nightmare in the second run, crashing into the wall, slewing sideways and losing all their speed The highly anticipated battle between the German and US sleds in the Olympic two-woman bobsleigh competition did not disappoint on Friday as they filled the top five places at the halfway point, with defending champion Laura Nolte leading the way. Taiwan’s Lin Sin-rong and Lin Song-en came 25th afte
The US yesterday won gold in the Olympics freestyle skiing mixed team final, retaining their 2022 title, while Switzerland won silver and favorites China claimed bronze. The US stormed to victory after failing to reach the podium in this week’s women’s and men’s finals, where China took golds throug
Canada and the US are opening a fresh chapter in their epic Olympic rivalry today in Milan, Italy, facing off in a heaven-sent gold-medal game that North American fans were praying for in the men’s ice hockey tournament. The NHL could scarcely have written a better script when they agreed to send th
South Korea’s Kim Gil-li on Friday won the women’s 1,500m short track speed skating final at the Winter Olympics, while Italian Arianna Fontana missed out on what would have been a record-equaling medal. Kim’s compatriot, Choi Min-jeong, champion in 2018 and 2022, finished second, while Corinne Stod
GAME CHANGER The Russian invasion of Ukraine has shown the utility of small drones for recon, for supporting logistics and for killing across the modern battlefield Five European nations have announced a new program to produce low-cost air defense systems and autonomous drones using Ukrainian expertise, hard-won over the past four years fighting against Russia.Friday’s initiative of the five nations — France, Poland, Germany, the UK and Italy — comes as one of
US President Donald Trump’s administration on Friday denounced “terrorism” and left-wing violence in France as French police braced for a weekend rally for a dead far-right protester.The US administration weighed in on the death of Quentin Deranque after French President Emmanuel Macron called on It
About 150 years after the last giant tortoises were removed from Floreana Island in Ecuador’s Galapagos archipelago, the species made a comeback Friday, when dozens of juvenile hybrids were released to begin restoring the island’s depleted ecosystem.The 158 tortoises, aged 8 to 13, have begun explor
Due to the Lunar New Year holiday, from Sunday, Feb. 15, through Sunday, Feb. 22, there will be no Features pages. The paper returns to its usual format on Monday, Feb. 23, when Features will also be resumed. Kung Hsi Fa Tsai!
The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists moving the Doomsday Clock to 85 seconds before midnight last month symbolized the closest humanity has ever been to global catastropheIn this context, the legislature remains gridlocked over the general budget, mirroring tensions simmering across the globe. Acco
Feb. 16 to Feb. 22Pai Ko’s (白克) film career appeared poised to reach new heights in 1962 with the completion of the highly-anticipated, star-studded Romance of Longshan Temple (龍山寺之戀). Despite being mainly in Hoklo (commonly known as Taiwanese), the film promoted harmony between those born in China
Due to the Lunar New Year holiday, from Sunday, Feb. 15, through Sunday, Feb. 22, there will be no Bilingual Pages. The paper returns to its usual format on Monday, Feb. 23, when Bilingual Pages will also be resumed.
A tragic case in California has brought renewed attention to the risks of using artificial intelligence. The parents of a 16-year-old boy, Adam Raine, filed a lawsuit in San Francisco against OpenAI, alleging that ChatGPT provided harmful information that encouraged his suicide. According to the com
A: Have you suddenly become so obsessed with ice sports because of the ongoing 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics?B: Apart from this, it’s also because of my obsession with an ice hockey-themed TV series, “Heated Rivalry.” A: Is that the gay romance drama where two ice hockey stars unexpectedly f
Two moves show Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) is gunning for Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) party chair and the 2028 presidential election. Technically, these are not yet “officially” official, but by the rules of Taiwan politics, she is now on the dance floor. Earlier this month Lu confirmed in an interview in Japan’s Nikkei that she was considering running for KMT chair. This is not new news, but according to reports from her camp she previously was still considering the case for and against running. By choosing a respected, international news outlet, she declared it to the world. While the outside world likely paid little attention, domestically the message was unmistakable: She is moving on to a larger stage. Part of the dance is to leave options open before formally committing, and with the chair race due in late September, she has time. If something goes wrong in the meantime, or if power brokers in the party offer her a deal that provides more benefits than taking on the role of chair, she can pivot accordingly. Earlier this year, I suggested that strategically, she would be better off concentrating on her job as Taichung mayor until she is term-limited out of office in December next year. Taichung mayor is obviously a full-time job, and concurrently running the Taipei-headquartered party runs the risk of doing one or both jobs poorly and making mistakes that could imperil her shot at the presidency in 2028. The situation has changed. Current KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), knowing he is likely to face challengers of a higher caliber than the three relative nobodies already declared, has gone all in on appealing to the base. The base is more likely to turn out to vote in the chair election, so this makes some strategic sense in the short term.
Among Thailand’s Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) villages, a certain rivalry exists between Arunothai, the largest of these villages, and Mae Salong, which is currently the most prosperous. Historically, the rivalry stems from a split in KMT military factions in the early 1960s, which divided command and opium territories after Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) cut off open support in 1961 due to international pressure (see part two, “The KMT opium lords of the Golden Triangle,” on May 20). But today this rivalry manifests as a different kind of split, with Arunothai leading a pro-China faction and Mae Salong staunchly aligned to Taiwan. Last spring at Arunothai’s Jiaolian School, principal Wang Mingming (王明明) had forewarned me of the division between villages, saying, “We are not like the people in Mae Salong. They are rich. Because of the Taiwanese.” Arunothai has in recent years become split in its loyalties between Taiwan and China (see part one, “A tale of two schools,” on May 15), but in Mae Salong, links to Taiwan remain strong. Taiwan-funded monuments pay homage to the Lost Army, villagers wear T-shirts emblazoned with the Republic of China (ROC) flag and tea plantations grown Taiwan’s most famous tea varieties, including Dong Ding (“frozen peak”) Oolong, Oriental Beauty and Jin Xuan (Golden Daylily or Milk Oolong). Even the numerical classifications of the teas — Oolong No. 12 or No. 17, for example — are the same, and the shops resemble those found on Alishan. At the tomb of General Tuan Hsi-wen (段希文) — perched on a Mae Salong hilltop with a view of his ancestral homeland in China’s Yunnan province — a third generation villager wearing a vintage KMT army uniform, Yan Si-Chung (岩思中), greets visitors with sharp military salutes. “Both my father and my grandfather were soldiers in the KMT army,” the 44-year-old
| New Taipei City | 27-28 | 20% |  |
| Hsinchu County | 26-27 | 10% | |
| Hsinchu City | 26-27 | 10% | |
| Taipei City | 27-28 | 20% |  |
| Miaoli County | 24-26 | 10% | |
| Taoyuan City | 26-27 | 10% | |
| Keelung City | 27-28 | 20% | |
| Yunlin County | 26-27 | 10% | |
| Taichung City | 26-28 | 10% | |
| Nantou County | 25-26 | 10% | |
| Changhua County | 27-28 | 10% | |
| Chiayi County | 26-27 | 10% | |
| Chiayi City | 25-27 | 10% | |
| Tainan City | 27-28 | 10% | |
| Kaohsiung City | 27-28 | 10% | |
| Pingtung County | 26-27 | 10% | |
| Yilan County | 25-26 | 30% |  |
| Hualien County | 25-26 | 30% | |
| Taitung County | 25-27 | 30% | |
| Kinmen County | 27-28 | 10% | |
| Penghu County | 27-27 | 20% | |
| Lienchiang County | 27-28 | 20% | |
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