Mon, May 04, 2026
UNBOWED: No country has the right to obstruct Taiwan’s contributions to the world, Lai said, referencing revocation of overflight permits attributed to pressure from China President William Lai (賴清德) and King Mswati III on Saturday reaffirmed diplomatic ties during the first day of Lai’s visit to the Kingdom of Eswatini, after an earlier trip to Taiwan’s sole African ally was suspended due to revoked overflight permits.After arriving at 9am on Saturday, Lai was welcom
SILENCING CRITICS: In addition to blocking Taiwan, China aimed to prevent rights activists from speaking out against authoritarian states, a Cabinet department said The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday condemned transnational repression by Beijing after RightsCon, a major digital human rights conference scheduled to be held in Zambia this week, was abruptly canceled due to Chinese pressure over Taiwanese participation.This year’s RightsCon, the worl
A group affiliated with indicted Chinese immigrant Xu Chunying (徐春鶯) is to be dissolved for monitoring Chinese immigrants in Taiwan, a source said yesterday.Xu, the secretary-general of the Cross-Strait Marriage and Family Service Alliance, was indicted on March 24 on charges of violating the Anti-I
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC) yesterday said the US faced a choice between an “impossible” military operation or a “bad deal” with Tehran, after US President Donald Trump disparaged Iran’s latest peace proposal.Negotiations between the two countries have been deadlocked since a ceas
Ukraine yesterday said it had hit several Russian ships — a cruise missile carrier and three shadow fleet tankers — as both sides fired hundreds of drones in a spree that killed at least five people.Three were killed in Ukraine, one in Russia and one in Russian-occupied southern Ukraine, according t
DELAYED BUT DETERMINED: The president’s visit highlights Taiwan’s right to international engagement amid regional pressure from China President Willaim Lai (賴清德) yesterday arrived in Eswatini, more than a week after his planned visit to Taiwan’s sole African ally was suspended because of revoked overflight permits.“The visit, originally scheduled for April 22, was postponed due to unforeseen external factors,” Lai wrote on social
Taiwanese movie production company Killing Angel Film yesterday released a trailer for Mr Monster (地下城の怪物先生), a Taiwanese sci-fi horror film made in English.The company released the official trailer for the movie on the YouTube channel of local production company Vie Vision Pictures Co, as well as t
The Tainan District Prosecutors' Office has indicted a man for allegedly slapping a part-time worker with Taiwan's Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) in Tainan in March.The man, surnamed Chiang (蔣), is being charged with assault and publicly insulting another person using violence, prosecut
This year’s Taiwan Digital Fest, a meetup for digital nomads, opened in Taitung County last night with a festival-like marketplace.The market kicked off an “unforgettable month of connection, culture, innovation and shared energy in Taiwan’s most inspiring eastern region,” organizers said. The festi
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People's Party (TPP) today released the results of a joint poll showing KMT Legislator Wu Tsung-hsien (吳宗憲) as the leading candidate for Yilan County commissioner in the Nov. 28 local elections.The results of a telephone poll of 1,093 respondents were r
A cross-party delegation from the New Zealand parliament arrived in Taiwan today for a five-day visit, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The delegation, which is visiting through Friday, is the third of its kind organized by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Taiwan since the group's establish
Chinese spouse Xu Chunying (徐春鶯), who has been detained on suspicion of infiltration activities linked to China, is to lose her permanent residency status and access to the National Health Insurance, although she is to remain in Taiwan to stand trial, an informed official said today. Xu, secretary-g
Two weather fronts are expected to affect Taiwan this week, bringing showers and thunderstorms across the main island, with northern Taiwan likely to see heavy rainfall today and tomorrow, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said.Combined with strengthening northeasterly winds, the first of the
Events held near the soon-to-open Danjiang Bridge (淡江大橋) over the weekend drew more than 150,000 people, the Highway Bureau said yesterday.The Danjiang Bridge Together Arts Festival, which began on April 18, was organized ahead of the bridge's official opening to traffic on Tuesday next week.A conce
‘BACKFIRED’: China’s efforts to isolate Taiwan revealed it is undermining international norms and raised concern over the weaponization of flight safety, an official said Taiwan yesterday said President William Lai (賴清德) did not need Beijing’s permission to go anywhere, hitting back against mocking remarks from China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) regarding the president’s Eswatini trip.Lai had arrived in the African country on Saturday on an Eswatini government aircr
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is seeking government approval for an advanced wafer fab at the Longtan (龍潭) campus of Hsinchu Science Park (新竹科學園區), the park's bureau said today.In a written reply, the Hsinchu Science Park Bureau said it would submit a proposal for the third phase
MANAGING RISKS: Taiwan has secured LNG sufficient to cover 95 percent of electricity demand for next month, UBS said, describing the government’s approach as proactive UBS Group AG has raised its forecast for Taiwan’s economic growth this year to 8 percent, up from 6.9 percent previously, and said expansion could reach as high as 8.6 percent if external energy shocks are avoided. The upgrade reflects a stronger-than-expected first-quarter performance and sustained
UNDISCLOSED: Thursday’s suspected interventions came after Japanese authorities issued strong warnings about foreign exchange action to traders Japanese Minister of Finance Satsuki Katayama declined to comment if authorities intervened to support the yen last week, after reports said they had entered the market for the first time since 2024.“As finance minister, at this stage I’m not in a position to comment,” Katayama told reporters in Sam
The opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) legislative caucuses on Monday last week held a hearing to present reasons for their proposal to impeach President William Lai (賴清德). It was not attended by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers, who called it a “p
China has long given assurances that it would not interfere in free access to the global commons. As one Ministry of Defense spokesperson put it in 2024, “the Chinese side always respects the freedom of navigation and overflight entitled to countries under international law.” Although these reassura
President William Lai’s (賴清德) arrival in Eswatini was more than a routine visit to a diplomatic ally. It was a textbook case of asymmetric diplomacy — outmaneuvering pressure not through confrontation, but through strategy. Faced with intensifying pressure from Beijing — from lobbying third countrie
COMEBACK: Embiid had said he was tired of losing to the Celtics, and the 76ers’ defeated Boston in their first-ever victory in a series in which they trailed 3-1 Joel Embiid on Saturday scored 34 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to propel the Philadelphia 76ers to a 109-100 victory over Boston that eliminated the Celtics from the NBA playoffs. Tyrese Maxey scored 10 of his 30 points in a frantic fourth quarter as the seventh-seeded Sixers thwarted the second-s
Arsenal stormed six points clear at the top of the English Premier League as Bukayo Saka and Viktor Gyokeres put Fulham to the sword in a 3-0 win, while West Ham United’s defeat at Brentford offered Tottenham Hotspur a lifeline in the battle for survival. The Gunners have stumbled toward the finish
The Houston Astros are not used to looking up in the American League West standings. While their first two games of a three-game road set against the Boston Red Sox have been a microcosm of an up-and-down season, a series win would be on the line when the teams returned to the field yesterday. After
Marta Kostyuk’s maiden WTA 1000 title in Madrid came on Saturday thanks to her power, poise and a pair of unexpected lucky shorts. The world No. 23 beat eighth-ranked Mirra Andreeva 6-3, 7-5 in under 90 minutes to secure the most prestigious trophy of her career, her third professional singles title
BIPARTISAN RESISTANCE: US Democrats and Republicans have expressed concern about the drawdown, saying it would send the wrong signal to Russia’s Vladimir Putin US President Donald Trump on Saturday said that the US would significantly reduce its troop presence in Germany, escalating a dispute with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz as he seeks to scale back the US’ commitment to European security.The Pentagon on Friday had initially announced it would pull 5
‘I’LL MISS THEM’: Many US travelers lamented the loss of the ‘last cheap’ airline, with a Reddit user saying that vacations would be out of reach for millions of families US air carriers on Saturday mobilized to help passengers and crew members stranded by the overnight shutdown of Spirit Airlines, after the low-cost carrier’s last-minute talks with creditors and the White House collapsed.Spirit, known for its bright yellow planes, succumbed to crushing fuel prices a
Colombian superstar Shakira on Saturday night gave a free concert on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, an event that the city’s mayor said drew 2 million people to one of the world’s most iconic waterfronts.The performance followed similar shows by Madonna in 2024 and Lady Gaga last year, which al
Traditionally, indigenous people in Taiwan’s mountains practice swidden cultivation, or “slash and burn” agriculture, a practice common in human history. According to a 2016 research article in the International Journal of Environmental Sustainability, among the Atayal people, this began with a sear
May 4 to May 10 It was once said that if you hadn’t performed at the Sapphire Grand Cabaret (藍寶石大歌廳), you couldn’t truly be considered a star.Taking the stage at the legendary Kaohsiung club was more than just a concert. Performers were expected to entertain in every sense, wearing outlandish or rev
President William Lai (賴清德) on Nov. 25 last year announced in a Washington Post op-ed that “my government will introduce a historic US$40 billion supplementary defense budget, an investment that underscores our commitment to defending Taiwan’s democracy.” Lai promised “significant new arms acquisiti
1. 途中他們從墓園旁走過。ˇ On their way they passed by the graveyard.χ On their way they passed through the graveyard.註︰「從……旁邊走過」該用 pass by。「從……（中間）穿過」用 pass through。例如：They must pass through the forest before dark.（他們必須在天黑以前穿過樹林。）2. 老師要我們把這一句用自己的話講出來。ˇ The teacher wanted us to rephrase the sentence in our own
Continued from yesterday（延續自昨日）https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/langOne way to monitor marine biodiversity is to send divers down to take photos and notes; however, this method is expensive, time-consuming, and sometimes risky. On coral reefs, noise is an indicator of a healthy seabed. This is large
Few sea creatures of their size have as much destructive power as pistol shrimp. These small animals, usually measuring around four centimeters long, produce shock waves that can stun or even kill their prey.The attack begins when the shrimp opens its specialized claw, allowing water to fill a chamb
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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