The European Parliament’s Special Committee on Foreign Interference in all Democratic Processes in the EU (INGE) is to send a delegation to Taiwan next month with the aim of exchanging experiences in countering false information and Internet interference by China, sources said.
Concerned about information security, the European Parliament on Oct. 6 voted to adopt a report on the state of the EU’s cyberdefense capabilities, urging the EU and its member states to further develop their comprehensive cybersecurity measures and defense policies to improve their resilience and mutual coordination.
The report also called on EU member states to step up cooperation with Taiwan, Australia, India, Japan, South Korea and the US, as well as other like-minded democracies in the Indo-Pacific region, and to share their knowledge and experiences to respond to cyberthreats together.
Photo: Reuters
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday said it did not have information on the INGE’s reported plans to send a delegation to Taiwan, but added that it would work with relevant EU institutions, such as the European Parliament, to develop mutually beneficial ties.
Meanwhile, the European Parliament is scheduled on Wednesday to vote on a report on Taiwan-EU political relations and cooperation.
The report supports deepening political relations with Taiwan, as well as increasing the nation’s participation in the international arena.
If passed, it would mark an important milestone in Europe’s support of Taiwan’s democracy.
Separately on Wednesday, National Development Council Minister Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) is to lead a delegation focused on trade and investment to Slovakia, Lithuania and the Czech Republic, while Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) is expected to visit Prague later this month to attend a conference at the invitation of the Czech Senate.
Lithuanian lawmaker Matas Maldeikis, chairman of the Parliamentary Group for Relations With Taiwan, is also to lead a delegation to the nation in December at the invitation of Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chiu Chih-wei (邱志偉), who is head of the parliamentary friendship group between Taiwan and the Baltic states.
Maldeikis said in a recent interview that he specifically invited members of Lithuania’s parliament with different political stances, including members of the opposition, to join the trip so that they could see for themselves how Taiwan and Lithuania could benefit from cooperating with one another.
His dream is to find a niche for Lithuania’s businesses to cooperate with Taiwan, and to have the total amount of bilateral trade and investment between the nations surpass that of Lithuania and China, he said.
DEFENSE: The first set of three NASAMS that were previously purchased is expected to be delivered by the end of this year and deployed near the capital, sources said Taiwan plans to procure 28 more sets of M-142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), as well as nine additional sets of National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS), military sources said yesterday. Taiwan had previously purchased 29 HIMARS launchers from the US and received the first 11 last year. Once the planned purchases are completed and delivered, Taiwan would have 57 sets of HIMARS. The army has also increased the number of MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) purchased from 64 to 84, the sources added. Each HIMARS launch pod can carry six Guided Multiple Launch Rocket Systems, capable of
Authorities have detained three former Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TMSC, 台積電) employees on suspicion of compromising classified technology used in making 2-nanometer chips, the Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office said yesterday. Prosecutors are holding a former TSMC engineer surnamed Chen (陳) and two recently sacked TSMC engineers, including one person surnamed Wu (吳) in detention with restricted communication, following an investigation launched on July 25, a statement said. The announcement came a day after Nikkei Asia reported on the technology theft in an exclusive story, saying TSMC had fired two workers for contravening data rules on advanced chipmaking technology. Two-nanometer wafers are the most
TRAJECTORY: The severe tropical storm is predicted to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday and Thursday, and would influence the nation to varying degrees, a forecaster said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it would likely issue a sea warning for Tropical Storm Podul tomorrow morning and a land warning that evening at the earliest. CWA forecaster Lin Ting-yi (林定宜) said the severe tropical storm is predicted to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday and Thursday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving west at 21kph and packing sustained winds of 108kph and gusts of up to 136.8kph, the CWA said. Lin said that the tropical storm was about 1,710km east of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, with two possible trajectories over the next one
CHINA’s BULLYING: The former British prime minister said that he believes ‘Taiwan can and will’ protect its freedom and democracy, as its people are lovers of liberty Former British prime minister Boris Johnson yesterday said Western nations should have the courage to stand with and deepen their economic partnerships with Taiwan in the face of China’s intensified pressure. He made the remarks at the ninth Ketagalan Forum: 2025 Indo-Pacific Security Dialogue hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Prospect Foundation in Taipei. Johnson, who is visiting Taiwan for the first time, said he had seen Taiwan’s coastline on a screen on his indoor bicycle, but wanted to learn more about the nation, including its artificial intelligence (AI) development, the key technology of the 21st century. Calling himself an
RSS