Against a backdrop of strained relations in the Middle East, legislators and veteran watchers of the region are set to visit Israel and Jordan next week as part of an effort to strengthen Taiwan's ties with the region, legislators said yesterday.
The group, headed by the Legislative Yuan's Foreign and Overseas Chinese Affairs Committee, are scheduled to begin an eight-day trip to Israel and Jordan on Jan. 4 under the banner of so-called "parliamentarian diplomacy," legislators said.
"In view of the current difficulty in conducting government-to-government relations between Taiwan and these Middle East countries that do not recognize Taiwan, we hope that at least this diplomatic venue can help enhance bilateral ties," said KMT Legislator Kwan Yuk-noan (關沃暖).
Jason Hu (
"Hu has maintained good ties with the Jordanian royal family. He even made a secret trip to Jordan when he was the foreign minister. Chiang has visited Israel many times in the past when he was a journalist and has a keen interest in Middle East affairs," the KMT's Shang-ren Lee(
But neither Hu nor Chiang could be contacted yesterday to confirm whether they would join the group on the trip.
In an interview with the Media Watch (
The recent violence between Israelis and Palestinians is expected to be one of the key talking points, legislators said.
In addition to Lee and Kwan, the group will also include Trong Chai (
UPDATED (3:40pm): A suspected gas explosion at a shopping mall in Taichung this morning has killed four people and injured 20 others, as emergency responders continue to investigate. The explosion occurred on the 12th floor of the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi in Situn District (西屯) at 11:33am. One person was declared dead at the scene, while three people were declared deceased later after receiving emergency treatment. Another 20 people sustained major or minor injuries. The Taichung Fire Bureau said it received a report of the explosion at 11:33am and sent rescuers to respond. The cause of the explosion is still under investigation, it said. The National Fire
ACCOUNTABILITY: The incident, which occured at a Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Department Store in Taichung, was allegedly caused by a gas explosion on the 12th floor Shin Kong Group (新光集團) president Richard Wu (吳昕陽) yesterday said the company would take responsibility for an apparent gas explosion that resulted in four deaths and 26 injuries at Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Zhonggang Store in Taichung yesterday. The Taichung Fire Bureau at 11:33am yesterday received a report saying that people were injured after an explosion at the department store on Section 3 of Taiwan Boulevard in Taichung’s Situn District (西屯). It sent 56 ambulances and 136 paramedics to the site, with the people injured sent to Cheng Ching Hospital’s Chung Kang Branch, Wuri Lin Shin Hospital, Taichung Veterans General Hospital or Chung
‘TAIWAN-FRIENDLY’: The last time the Web site fact sheet removed the lines on the US not supporting Taiwanese independence was during the Biden administration in 2022 The US Department of State has removed a statement on its Web site that it does not support Taiwanese independence, among changes that the Taiwanese government praised yesterday as supporting Taiwan. The Taiwan-US relations fact sheet, produced by the department’s Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, previously stated that the US opposes “any unilateral changes to the status quo from either side; we do not support Taiwan independence; and we expect cross-strait differences to be resolved by peaceful means.” In the updated version published on Thursday, the line stating that the US does not support Taiwanese independence had been removed. The updated
‘LAWFUL USE’: The last time a US warship transited the Taiwan Strait was on Oct. 20 last year, and this week’s transit is the first of US President Donald Trump’s second term Two US military vessels transited the Taiwan Strait from Sunday through early yesterday, the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement, the first such mission since US President Donald Trump took office last month. The two vessels sailed south through the Strait, the ministry said, adding that it closely monitored nearby airspace and waters at the time and observed nothing unusual. The ministry did not name the two vessels, but the US Navy identified them as the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson and the Pathfinder-class survey ship USNS Bowditch. The ships carried out a north-to-south transit from