Security talks between Taiwan and the US this week are to include discussion of military exercises and arms sales, a senior national security official said yesterday.
A delegation led by National Security Council Secretary-General Wellington Koo (顧立雄) is to participate in the annual Monterey Talks, considered to be the most important strategic collaboration between the two countries.
Although details are not made public as a matter of course, the United Daily News said working-level meetings are to be held from tomorrow to Friday ahead of high-level talks from Monday to Wednesday next week in Washington and Annapolis, Maryland.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
The talks, the second held since US President Joe Biden took office last year, are taking place against the backdrop of Russia’s war against Ukraine and increased Chinese military pressure on Taiwan.
Channels of communication between Taiwan and the US are clear, Presidential Office spokesman Xavier Chang (張惇涵) said yesterday when asked about the talks, while declining to comment on any agreements.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Joanne Ou (歐江安) also declined to comment, saying only that the two nations would further deepen their cooperation on an already solid foundation.
Photo: Reuters
A senior national security official said on condition of anonymity yesterday that Washington is expected to focus on upgrades to existing equipment to enhance immediate combat capabilities as a response to uncertainties in the cross-strait situation.
This strategy differs from that of former US president Donald Trump’s administration, whose arms sales to Taiwan focused on new equipment, the official said, adding that cooperation on military exercises is also to be clarified.
Cooperation with the Republic of China Marine Corp would be an important topic, as the US Marine Corp has adjusted its strategy to act as “stand-in forces” for rapid deployment to the first island chain, the official said.
The US Marine Corp in December last year formalized the strategy in A Concept for Stand-In Forces.
Last month, Colonel Stephen Fiscus, assistant chief of staff for force development at US Marine Forces Pacific, said that the III Marine Expeditionary Force in Okinawa is focused on the “ability to stand in — by our footprints, our posture, our relationship with partners and allies — to kind of get the enemy in our guard” within their engagement zone, rather than remaining at a distance.
US military officials are emphasizing cooperation with allies, the official said, adding that shifting US priorities are in part due to heightened cross-strait tensions.
The US considers any Chinese military action in the first island chain to fall within its “weapons engagement zone,” they said.
The US Indo-Pacific Command’s engagement is “closer than people think,” with interactions shifting from “transactional” to “collaborative,” the official said.
The Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee yesterday approved proposed amendments to the Amusement Tax Act (娛樂稅法) that would abolish taxes on films, cultural activities and competitive sporting events, retaining the fee only for dance halls and golf courses. The proposed changes would set the maximum tax rate for dance halls and golf courses at 50 and 20 percent respectively, with local governments authorized to suspend the levies. Article 2 of the act says that “amusement tax shall be levied on tickets sold or fees charged by amusement places, facilities or activities” in six categories: “Cinema; professional singing, story-telling, dancing, circus, magic show, acrobatics
Tainan, Taipei and New Taipei City recorded the highest fines nationwide for illegal accommodations in the first quarter of this year, with fines issued in the three cities each exceeding NT$7 million (US$220,639), Tourism Administration data showed. Among them, Taipei had the highest number of illegal short-term rental units, with 410. There were 3,280 legally registered hotels nationwide in the first quarter, down by 14 properties, or 0.43 percent, from a year earlier, likely indicating operators exiting the market, the agency said. However, the number of unregistered properties rose to 1,174, including 314 illegal hotels and 860 illegal short-term rental
INFLATION UP? The IMF said CPI would increase to 1.5 percent this year, while the DGBAS projected it would rise to 1.68 percent, with GDP per capita of US$44,181 The IMF projected Taiwan’s real GDP would grow 5.2 percent this year, up from its 2.1 percent outlook in January, despite fears of global economic disruptions sparked by the US-Iran conflict. Taiwan’s consumer price index (CPI) is projected to increase to 1.5 percent, while unemployment would be 3.4 percent, roughly in line with estimates for Asia as a whole, the international body wrote in its Global Economic Outlook Report published in the US on Monday. The figures are comparatively better than the IMF outlook for the rest of the world, which pegged real GDP growth at 3.1 percent, down from 3.3 percent
CREDIT-GRABBER: China said its coast guard rescued the crew of a fishing vessel that caught fire, who were actually rescued by a nearby Taiwanese boat and the CGA Maritime search and rescue operations do not have borders, and China should not use a shipwreck to infringe upon Taiwanese sovereignty, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said yesterday. The coast guard made the statement in response to the China Coast Guard (CCG) saying it saved a Taiwanese fishing boat. The Chuan Yu No. 6 (全漁6號), a fishing vessel registered in Keelung, on Thursday caught fire and sank in waters northeast of Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台). The vessel left Keelung’s Badouzih Fishing Harbor (八斗子漁港) at 3:35pm on Sunday last week, with seven people on board — a 62-year-old Taiwanese captain surnamed Chang (張) and six
RSS