The national security team has promptly assessed the situation in the Middle East following the US bombing of Iran, Presidential Office spokesperson Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said yesterday.
Kuo made the remark following US President Donald Trump’s announcement yesterday that US forces had attacked three nuclear sites in Iran via aerial bombing.
The national security team has briefed President William Lai (賴清德) on the latest developments, and Lai has instructed the team and executive branches to monitor potential developments and take appropriate action, Kuo said.
Photo: Yasuyoshi Chiba, AFP
The government would continue to maintain close communication with allies around the world to ensure overall stability and national security, she said.
Executive branches would also closely monitor the impact of the Middle East conflict on global politics and economic markets and address related issues accordingly, she added.
Meanwhile, an official familiar with cross-strait affairs said that Taiwan should closely observe China’s actions, as Iran might seek global retaliation for the US’ involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict, while China continues to escalate threats against Taiwan through military force.
Chinese warplanes disappeared from the Taiwan Strait for several days, likely due to a typhoon in China, which impacted the 17th Straits Forum in Xiamen, China.
However, Chinese warplanes reappeared on Thursday last week and resumed “gray zone” incursions to intimidate Taiwan, the official said.
China, Russia and Iran are strategically cooperating, and potential attacks on democratic nations should be treated with utmost caution, they said.
While Iran could seek revenge for the US attacking it, possibly leading to a global conflict, China has not yet militarily supported Iran, and is not as closely aligned with Iran in military cooperation as Iran is with Russia, they added.
At present, China is unlikely to become involved in the Israel-Iran conflict, they said.
WAITING GAME: The US has so far only offered a ‘best rate tariff,’ which officials assume is about 15 percent, the same as Japan, a person familiar with the matter said Taiwan and the US have completed “technical consultations” regarding tariffs and a finalized rate is expected to be released soon, Executive Yuan spokeswoman Michelle Lee (李慧芝) told a news conference yesterday, as a 90-day pause on US President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs is set to expire today. The two countries have reached a “certain degree of consensus” on issues such as tariffs, nontariff trade barriers, trade facilitation, supply chain resilience and economic security, Lee said. They also discussed opportunities for cooperation, investment and procurement, she said. A joint statement is still being negotiated and would be released once the US government has made
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
NEW GEAR: On top of the new Tien Kung IV air defense missiles, the military is expected to place orders for a new combat vehicle next year for delivery in 2028 Mass production of Tien Kung IV (Sky Bow IV) missiles is expected to start next year, with plans to order 122 pods, the Ministry of National Defense’s (MND) latest list of regulated military material showed. The document said that the armed forces would obtain 46 pods of the air defense missiles next year and 76 pods the year after that. The Tien Kung IV is designed to intercept cruise missiles and ballistic missiles to an altitude of 70km, compared with the 60km maximum altitude achieved by the Missile Segment Enhancement variant of PAC-3 systems. A defense source said yesterday that the number of
Taiwanese exports to the US are to be subject to a 20 percent tariff starting on Thursday next week, according to an executive order signed by US President Donald Trump yesterday. The 20 percent levy was the same as the tariffs imposed on Vietnam, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh by Trump. It was higher than the tariffs imposed on Japan, South Korea and the EU (15 percent), as well as those on the Philippines (19 percent). A Taiwan official with knowledge of the matter said it is a "phased" tariff rate, and negotiations would continue. "Once negotiations conclude, Taiwan will obtain a better