DEFENSE BOOST: Taiwan will use AI to establish a real-time defense system, and the budget would also aim for economic and industrial development, Lai said
Taiwan can well afford a NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.16 billion) special defense budget given its booming economy, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, citing US emphasis on collective burden-sharing. Lai’s proposed spending, which he says is needed to better face a rising threat from China, has
Gasoline and diesel prices are to remain unchanged this week from tomorrow, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) announced yesterday amid the ongoing Middle East conflict and rising global oil prices. The electricity rate next month would also remain unchanged after the Mini
Israel yesterday said the war against Iran was entering its “decisive phase,” as explosions rocked cities across the Middle East, with strikes on the US embassy in Baghdad and a major Emirati energy facility. Black smoke rose above the embassy in Iraq, the second time it has been targeted since Feb.
North Korea yesterday fired about 10 ballistic missiles to the sea toward Japan, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, days after Pyongyang warned of “terrible consequences” over ongoing South Korea-US military drills. Pyongyang recently dashed hopes of a diplomatic thaw with Seoul, Was
‘CONFIDENCE IN TRUMP’: The expected approval of the arms package signals the US’ continued security commitment ahead of a US-China meeting later this month
A major US arms package for Taiwan that includes advanced interceptor missiles is ready for US President Donald Trump’s approval and could be signed after his trip to China this month, sources briefed on the discussions said.With a price tag of about US$14 billion, the arms deal would be the largest
WEAPONS TIME FRAME: The motion also directed the Executive Yuan to brief the legislature on the estimated delivery dates of the US weapons systems
The Legislative Yuan yesterday passed a motion authorizing the Cabinet to sign letters of acceptance (LOA) for four weapons systems approved for sale by the US that were set to expire this month.The motion was passed by the legislature in line with the conclusion reached following cross-caucus talks
The Supreme Court yesterday upheld a four-year prison sentence for a retired National Security Bureau (NSB) agent for contravening the National Intelligence Services Act (國家情報工作法) by seeking employment in China using classified information.The ruling is final and cannot be appealed.According to a co
A large explosion yesterday rocked an area of Iran’s capital where thousands were gathered for the annual state-organized Quds Day to support the Palestinians and call for Israel’s demise.Israel had earlier warned that it would target the area in central Tehran.There were no immediate reports of cas
A three-year-old party won Nepal’s general election by a landslide, authorities said, positioning its candidate Balendra Shah to become the next prime minister, with a mandate for the rapper-turned-politician to restore political stability.The election on March 5 was the Himalayan nation’s first sin
ART: Taiwan and the US already reached a consensus on many issues covered by the Section 301 investigations, which the probe would reflect, a Cabinet spokeswoman said
The benefits Taiwan secured under the US-Taiwan Agreement on Reciprocal Trade (ART) would not be affected by Washington’s decision to launch a probe into 16 economies, including Taiwan, under Section 301 of the US Trade Act, Cabinet spokeswoman Michelle Lee (李慧芝) said yesterday.Lee said she is optim
ON HOLD: KMT and TPP lawmakers declined to grant the Cabinet prior approval to sign an expected letter of acceptance to buy Altius’ 600 and 700M drones
The three main political parties yesterday agreed to authorize the government to sign US agreements for four arms sales packages before the defense budget is passed, after officials warned that Taiwan would go to the back of the line if it missed the deadline.President William Lai’s (賴清德) administra
Nearly 60 percent of Taiwanese polled said they would be willing to resist “at all costs” if China attacks Taiwan and the US does not deploy forces to help, an Academia Sinica survey released yesterday found.The Institute of European and American Studies’ “American Portrait” survey found that 58.7 p
China yesterday passed a law on a “shared” national identity among the country’s 55 ethnic minority groups, a move critics say would further erode the identity of people who are not majority Han Chinese and risk making anyone challenging that “unity” a separatist punishable by law.The Law on Promoti
Iran’s unrelenting attacks on shipping traffic and energy infrastructure in the Persian Gulf yesterday pushed oil back above US$100 a barrel, as US and Israeli strikes pounded the Islamic republic with no sign of an end to the war in sight.Iran is trying to inflict enough global economic pain to pre
‘UNWAVERING FRIENDSHIP’: A representative of a Japanese group that co-organized a memorial, said he hopes Japanese never forget Taiwan’s kindness
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday marked the 15th anniversary of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, urging continued cooperation between Taiwan and Japan on disaster prevention and humanitarian assistance.Lai wrote on social media that Taiwan and Japan have always helped each other in the afterm
MORE OPTIONS: The bill seeks to ‘harden a critical weak point’ in the Indo-Pacific region by finding ways to diversify and protect Taiwan’s energy infrastructure
US Representative Pat Harrigan yesterday introduced the Taiwan Energy Security and Anti-Embargo Act of 2026, saying it would ensure “Taiwan isn’t left vulnerable to supply shocks, coercion by the Chinese Communist Party [CCP], or external geopolitical turmoil.”“Energy is leverage,” Harrigan, a Repub
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) yesterday vowed to back the status of a lawmaker who allegedly failed to renounce her Chinese citizenship.Han read out a statement following the breakdown of interparty negotiations at the legislature, saying that the KMT would sup
New attacks yesterday hit three commercial ships in the Gulf, setting at least one vessel on fire, as Iran pressed its campaign against its energy-exporting neighbors and forced world governments to dip into their strategic oil reserves.Oil prices surged higher by more than 5 percent in early tradin
Chinese authorities have moved to restrict state-run enterprises and government agencies from running OpenClaw artificial intelligence (AI) apps on office computers, acting swiftly to defuse potential security risks after companies and consumers across China began experimenting with the agentic AI.G
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