Pakistan's capital was under security lockdown yesterday ahead of a visit by US President George W. Bush and a nationwide strike by Islamists against cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed.
Thousands of troops and police lined the streets ahead of Bush's scheduled arrival in Islamabad late yesterday, a day after a suicide bomber in the southern city of Karachi killed a US diplomat outside the US consulate.
Bush was expected to use the attack to nudge Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, a key ally in the "war on terror," to commit more resources to capturing al-Qaeda kingpin Osama bin Laden and his deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri.
"The bombing that took place prior to my trip is an indication that the war on terror goes on and that free nations must come together to fight terrorism," Bush said late on Thursday in New Delhi.
Bush vowed that the "terrorists and killers" behind the attack -- suspected to be Islamic militants angered by Musharraf's close ties to Washington -- would not deter him from visiting Pakistan.
Commandos took positions on rooftops and security forces also spread out in the forested hills overlooking Islamabad, from where militants planned a rocket attack on Musharraf in 2003, officials said.
CSBC Corp, Taiwan (台灣國際造船) yesterday released the first video documenting the submerged sea trials of Taiwan’s indigenous defense submarine prototype, the Hai Kun (海鯤), or Narwhal, showing underwater navigation and the launch of countermeasures. The footage shows the vessel’s first dive, steering and control system tests, and the raising and lowering of the periscope and antenna masts. It offered a rare look at the progress in the submarine’s sea acceptance tests. The Hai Kun carried out its first shallow-water diving trial late last month and has since completed four submerged tests, CSBC said. The newly released video compiles images recorded from Jan. 29 to
DETERRENCE EFFORTS: Washington and partners hope demonstrations of force would convince Beijing that military action against Taiwan would carry high costs The US is considering using HMAS Stirling in Western Australia as a forward base to strengthen its naval posture in a potential conflict with China, particularly over Taiwan, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday. As part of its Indo-Pacific strategy, Washington plans to deploy up to four nuclear-powered submarines at Stirling starting in 2027, providing a base near potential hot spots such as Taiwan and the South China Sea. The move also aims to enhance military integration with Pacific allies under the Australia-UK-US trilateral security partnership, the report said. Currently, US submarines operate from Guam, but the island could
RESTRAINTS: Should China’s actions pose any threat to Taiwan’s security, economic or social systems, China would be excluded from major financial institutions, the bill says The US House of Representatives on Monday passed the PROTECT Taiwan Act, which states that Washington would exclude China from participating in major global financial organizations if its actions directly threaten Taiwan’s security. The bill, proposed by Republican Representative Frank Lucas, passed with 395 votes in favor and two against. It stipulates that if China’s actions pose any threat to Taiwan’s security, economic or social systems, the US would, “to the maximum extent practicable,” exclude Beijing from international financial institutions, including the G20, the Bank for International Settlements and the Financial Stability Board. The bill makes it clear that China must be prepared
Taiwanese trade negotiators told Washington that Taipei would not relocate 40 percent of its semiconductor production to the US, and that its most advanced technologies would remain in the nation, Vice Premier Cheng Li-chiun (鄭麗君) said on Sunday. “I told the US side very clearly — that’s impossible,” Cheng, who led the negotiation team, said in an interview that aired on Sunday night on Chinese Television System. Cheng was referring to remarks last month by US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, in which he said his goal was to bring 40 percent of Taiwan’s chip supply chain to the US Taiwan’s almost
RSS