China’s intrusive and territorial claims in the Indo-Pacific region are “illegal, coercive, aggressive and deceptive,” new US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo said on Friday, adding that he would continue working with allies and partners to keep the area free and open.
Paparo made the remarks at a change-of-command ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii, where he took over the command from Admiral John Aquilino.
“Our world faces a complex problem set in the troubling actions of the People’s Republic of China [PRC] and its rapid buildup of forces. We must be ready to answer the PRC’s increasingly intrusive and expansionist claims in the Indo-Pacific region,” Paparo said.
Photo: AFP
“Some call it the gray zone. My friend General Brawner from the Republic of the Philippines has a phrase called ICAD, and he has renamed the gray zone, which sounds otherwise benign and dull into ICAD — which is illegal, coercive, aggressive and deceptive,” he said.
“We will safeguard the international order characterized by transparency, cooperation, fair competition and the rule of law. We’ll bring all to bear in all domains, harnessing an integrated capability supporting partnerships to maintain peace and security while safeguarding sovereign rights,” he said.
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, who presided over the ceremony, criticized China over its increasingly coercive actions in the region, including in the Taiwan Strait and the East and South China seas.
Photo: Screen grab from the US Indo-Pacific Command’s X account
The US Indo-Pacific Command posted on X a photograph that included Chief of the General Staff Admiral Mei Chia-shu (梅家樹) among those present at the ceremony.
In other news, German Minister of Foreign Affairs Annalena Baerbock on Saturday did not rule out the possibility of a German frigate transiting the Taiwan Strait in the coming weeks.
Speaking during a state visit in New Zealand, Baerbock said that the Baden-Wurttemberg and a supply ship would tomorrow set off on a training mission in the Pacific, German news agency DPA reported.
Although the ships’ route would not be announced in advance, she said that the “right of peaceful passage” applied to the Taiwan Strait, suggesting the vessel might transit the Strait.
The Central Election Commission has amended election and recall regulations to require elected office candidates to provide proof that they have no Chinese citizenship, a Cabinet report said. The commission on Oct. 29 last year revised the Measures for the Permission of Family-based Residence, Long-term Residence and Settlement of People from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area (大陸地區人民在台灣地區依親居留長期居留或定居許可辦法), the Executive Yuan said in a report it submitted to the legislature for review. The revision requires Chinese citizens applying for permanent residency to submit notarial documents showing that they have lost their Chinese household record and have renounced — or have never
A magnitude 5.6 earthquake struck off the coast of Yilan County at 12:37pm today, with clear shaking felt across much of northern Taiwan. There were no immediate reports of damage. The epicenter of the quake was 16.9km east-southeast of Yilan County Hall offshore at a depth of 66.8km, Central Weather Administration (CWA) data showed. The maximum intensity registered at a 4 in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳) on Taiwan’s seven-tier scale. Other parts of Yilan, as well as certain areas of Hualien County, Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Hsinchu County, Taichung and Miaoli County, recorded intensities of 3. Residents of Yilan County and Taipei received
Taiwan has secured another breakthrough in fruit exports, with jujubes, dragon fruit and lychees approved for shipment to the EU, the Ministry of Agriculture said yesterday. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency on Thursday received formal notification of the approval from the EU, the ministry said, adding that the decision was expected to expand Taiwanese fruit producers’ access to high-end European markets. Taiwan exported 126 tonnes of lychees last year, valued at US$1.48 million, with Japan accounting for 102 tonnes. Other export destinations included New Zealand, Hong Kong, the US and Australia, ministry data showed. Jujube exports totaled 103 tonnes, valued at
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