The two sides of the Taiwan Strait should strengthen mutual judicial assistance after the opening of the "small three links," a senior cross-strait affairs official said yesterday.
Lin Chong-pin (
In line with the Offshore Islands Development Act passed by the legislature earlier this year, the government is scheduled Jan. 1 to formally open direct trade, mail and shipping links between its defense outposts of Kinmen and Matsu, and China's Xiamen and Fuzhou ports, commonly known as the small three links, on a trial basis for one year.
Some people are worried that the opening of direct exchanges of people and goods between the two front-line islands and China may invite problems in legal order on both sides and a rise in the crime rate.
Responding to such worries, Lin said judicial organizations on the two sides of the Taiwan Strait should reinforce mutual assistance and join forces to crack down on crime to ensure a smooth opening of the small three links.
Noting that the success of the small three links hinges on security management and safeguarding law and order, Lin said the Taiwan government looks forward to forging systematic consultative channels with China to facilitate orderly cross-strait exchanges and better protect the rights and interests of the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.
Lin said the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Justice, the National Coast Guard Administration and other relevant government agencies have completed various security measures to curb possible illegal entry and exit, as well as smuggling and illegal transshipment of goods between Taiwan proper and China following the opening of the small three links.
Meanwhile, Lin said he regretted Legislator Chen Ching-pao's (陳清寶) decision to suspend a planned trial voyage, originally set for Dec. 26, between Kinmen and Xiamen before the formal opening of the links with a view to testing the safety of the new route. Chen was forced to cancel the plan mainly because of pressure from Beijing.
Lin called on China to adopt a pragmatic, positive manner to deal with cross-strait engagement to help foster mutual trust and rapprochement.
He further stressed that the government has no intention of promoting full-fledged direct cross-strait trade, mail and transport links, known as the "three links," by opening the small three links.
Nevertheless, Lin said he is convinced that the experience from implementing the small three links will be helpful to planning an orderly opening of the three links.
A signaling system malfunction disrupted high-speed rail (HSR) services beginning at 8am today, with trains temporarily reduced to three northbound and three southbound trains per hour as authorities conduct inspections. The malfunction occurred on a section of track in Miaoli County during pre-operation checks early this morning, forcing northbound and southbound trains to use a single track, the HSR operator said. The regular schedule has been replaced with three hourly trains offering only nonreserved seating in each direction, stopping at every station, it said, adding that business class cars would still have reserved seating. Departures from terminal stations are scheduled at the top
DRONE CENTRAL: Taiwan aims to become Asia’s democratic hub for drones, with most exports focused on high-quality military-grade models, an official said Taiwan’s drone industry is expected to expand significantly by 2030, producing 100,000 units per month and exporting half of them, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday. Current drone production capacity is about 15,000 units per month, but the industry can quickly scale up as demand increases, Industrial Development Administration Director-General Chiou Chyou-huey (邱求慧) told a news conference in Taipei. Taiwan’s drone output grew 2.5-fold last year to NT$12.9 billion (US$408.3 million) under a government program to develop the uncrewed vehicle sector, he said. The Executive Yuan in October last year approved plans to invest NT$44.2 billion into domestic production of uncrewed aerial
VERBOSE VESSELS: A CGA cutter and a China Coast Guard exchanged verbal barbs for more than a day in Taiwanese-controlled waters before the Chinese vessel left The Taiwanese and Chinese coast guards had a standoff near the strategically located Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島) in the north of the South China Sea, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said yesterday. The two sides engaged in intense radio exchanges over sovereignty claims during the 33-hour standoff. China Coast Guard vessel 3501 eventually left the restricted waters, 26.6 nautical miles (49.2km) west of the Pratas Islands, at 5pm yesterday, the CGA said. Lying approximately between southern Taiwan and Hong Kong, the Taiwan-controlled Pratas are seen by some security experts as vulnerable to Chinese attack due to their distance — more than
WARNING: China should stop engaging in actions that undermine regional peace and stability, as it would only build resentment among people across the Strait, the CGA said China has deployed more than 100 navy, coast guard and other vessels in waters from the Yellow Sea to the South China Sea and the western Pacific since US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) met in Beijing, National Security Council Secretary-General Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said yesterday. “In this part of the world, #China is the one & only PROBLEM wrecking the #StatusQuo & threatening regional peace & stability,” Wu wrote on X. In a separate post, he said Beijing was coercing Taiwan’s maritime domain, calling it illegal and provocative, after the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) expelled a
RSS