The government expects satellite service by British provider OneWeb to cover all of Taiwan by the end of this year, Minister of Digital Affairs Audrey Tang (唐鳳) said.
The service expansion would provide more options for low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites to Taiwan, the Central News Agency quoted Tang as saying.
OneWeb services are currently only available in the northern part of Taiwan, said Tang, who made a rare trip to London earlier this week and visited OneWeb, which specializes in LEO satellites.
Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Digital Affairs
OneWeb, which is backed by the British government, is “very willing” to work with Taiwan to bolster Taiwan’s communication infrastructure, she said.
The government’s disaster response plan calls for the establishment of 700 satellite receivers placed across the country, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said.
Some of the receivers would be fixed and others mobile, and they would have to be configured to receive communications from multiple constellations of satellites in LEO and medium Earth orbit.
However, online commenters yesterday raised concerns, as China has invested in one of OneWeb’s owners, with some saying that working with the satellite operator would run afoul of the ministry’s own regulations.
In July last year, OneWeb announced it would merge with French Satellite operator Eutelsat, in which Beijing-run China Investment Corp (中國投資公司) has a 7 percent stake. Eutelsat’s board approved the merger in November last year, and the deal is to be finalized this year.
An official speaking on condition of anonymity said that the British government would retain a special share in OneWeb that gives London a final say over any partnership with the company or access to its technology.
As a member of the “Five Eyes” alliance with Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the US, the UK can be counted upon to be strict about its national interests and information security, the official said.
The special share is a legal mechanism that grants the government more control over OneWeb than the face value of the share would normally confer, the official said, adding that it would permit London to allow only friendly nations to be part of the company’s supply chain.
Additionally, China owns less than 5 percent of OneWeb and the company falls under the legal category of satellite operator under Taiwanese regulations, the official said.
That means rules barring collaboration with telecom companies with more than 5 percent Chinese shares do not apply to the proposal, as Internet users incorrectly suggested, they said.
The Taiwan Space Agency yesterday said that Taiwan would need more than 120 satellites to create a satellite-based Internet infrastructure, which far exceeds domestic launch capabilities.
The agency also sees no alternative than to seek help from foreign entities to launch the satellites, it said, adding that candidates for partnership would be vetted carefully in line with laws and regulations.
The agency previously said that the satellite project was a necessary measure to address the vulnerability of Taiwan’s undersea Internet cables to sabotage by China.
Additional reporting by Wu Po-hsuan
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
NO CHANGE: The TRA makes clear that the US does not consider the status of Taiwan to have been determined by WWII-era documents, a former AIT deputy director said The American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) comments that World War-II era documents do not determine Taiwan’s political status accurately conveyed the US’ stance, the US Department of State said. An AIT spokesperson on Saturday said that a Chinese official mischaracterized World War II-era documents as stating that Taiwan was ceded to the China. The remarks from the US’ de facto embassy in Taiwan drew criticism from the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, whose director said the comments put Taiwan in danger. The Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday reported that a US State Department spokesperson confirmed the AIT’s position. They added that the US would continue to
IMPORTANT BACKER: China seeks to expel US influence from the Indo-Pacific region and supplant Washington as the global leader, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said China is preparing for war to seize Taiwan, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said in Washington on Friday, warning that Taiwan’s fall would trigger a regional “domino effect” endangering US security. In a speech titled “Maintaining the Peaceful and Stable Status Quo Across the Taiwan Strait is in Line with the Shared Interests of Taiwan and the United States,” Chiu said Taiwan’s strategic importance is “closely tied” to US interests. Geopolitically, Taiwan sits in a “core position” in the first island chain — an arc stretching from Japan, through Taiwan and the Philippines, to Borneo, which is shared by
RSS