Taipei City Mayor Ma Ying-jeou's (
Meanwhile, Kaohsiung City Mayor Frank Hsieh's (
"The national budget proposal has already been submitted to the Legislative Yuan, therefore, it's hard to make any changes," Director General of the Government Information Office Chung Chin (
Tang said any change in budget allocations would only be possible if the Law Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (
At the meeting Hsieh suggested the Cabinet begin taxing cigarettes and liquor and allow local governments to initiate lotteries to boost revenues. The Kaohsiung mayor also asked the Cabinet to follow through on Chen's promise to improve the quality of drinking water for the southern city.
"As the president promised on Aug. 5, the Cabinet will find ways to allocate NT$15 billion within three years to fulfill the [water purification] project," Chairman of the Research, Development and Evaluation Commission Lin Chia-cheng (
Hsieh also urged the Cabinet to make good on Chen's campaign promise to combine Kaohsiung City and its harbor by May 19, 2001. Tang, however, recommended Kaohsiung harbor first be registered as an independent corporation (獨立法人) so that its international competitiveness can be maintained, which Hsieh agreed to.
During the meeting, a total of NT$3 billion was prepared and approved by the Cabinet to subsidize projects in remote areas, including the offshore island groups of Kinmen (
The Cabinet also voiced support for Taipei's plan to hold the 2009 East-Asia Sports Contest (
‘WIN-WIN’: The Philippines, and central and eastern European countries are important potential drone cooperation partners, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung said Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) in an interview published yesterday confirmed that there are joint ventures between Taiwan and Poland in the drone industry. Lin made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper). The government-backed Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance and the Polish Chamber of Unmanned Systems on Wednesday last week signed a memorandum of understanding in Poland to develop a “non-China” supply chain for drones and work together on key technologies. Asked if Taiwan prioritized Poland among central and eastern European countries in drone collaboration, Lin
The Chien Feng IV (勁蜂, Mighty Hornet) loitering munition is on track to enter flight tests next month in connection with potential adoption by Taiwanese and US armed forces, a government source said yesterday. The kamikaze drone, which boasts a range of 1,000km, debuted at the Taipei Aerospace and Defense Technology Exhibition in September, the official said on condition of anonymity. The Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology and US-based Kratos Defense jointly developed the platform by leveraging the engine and airframe of the latter’s MQM-178 Firejet target drone, they said. The uncrewed aerial vehicle is designed to utilize an artificial intelligence computer
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday decided to shelve proposed legislation that would give elected officials full control over their stipends, saying it would wait for a consensus to be reached before acting. KMT Legislator Chen Yu-jen (陳玉珍) last week proposed amendments to the Organic Act of the Legislative Yuan (立法院組織法) and the Regulations on Allowances for Elected Representatives and Subsidies for Village Chiefs (地方民意代表費用支給及村里長事務補助費補助條例), which would give legislators and councilors the freedom to use their allowances without providing invoices for reimbursement. The proposal immediately drew criticism, amid reports that several legislators face possible charges of embezzling fees intended to pay
REQUIREMENTS: The US defense secretary must submit a Taiwan security assistance road map and an appraisal of Washington’s ability to respond to Indo-Pacific conflict The US Congress has released a new draft of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which includes up to US$1 billion in funding for Taiwan-related security cooperation next year. The version published on Sunday by US House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson removed earlier language that would have invited Taiwan to participate in the US-led Rim of the Pacific Exercise (RIMPAC). A statement on Johnson’s Web page said the NDAA “enhances U.S. defense initiatives in the Indo-Pacific to bolster Taiwan’s defense and support Indo-Pacific allies.” The bill would require the US secretary of defense to “enable fielding of uncrewed and anti-uncrewed systems capabilities”
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