■ Defense
US concerned over arms
US officials have expressed concern over the delay in the arms procurement plan, saying it threatened Taiwan's security. During recent meetings with a group of visiting Taiwanese journalists, many US officials, members of Congress and academics raised similar questions regarding what they see as Taiwan's inability to reach a consensus on the arms procurement plan and show the US its resolve to defend itself from a Chinese invasion. The Cabinet-proposed NT$480 billion (US$15.33 billion) arms procurement package -- which includes 12 P-3C maritime patrol aircraft, six Patriot PAC-III anti-missile batteries and eight diesel-electric submarines -- has been blocked by the opposition-controlled legislature for two consecutive sessions. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and People First Party have picked at the high price tag of the deal and the way the procurement is budgeted.
■ Cross-strait ties
Fruit export talks to be held
The government will hold unofficial talks with China on Taiwanese fruit exports, local media reported yesterday. "The World Health Organization [WHO] will hold a working meeting in Hong Kong next month. Taiwan and Chinese representatives will hold unofficial talks on fruit export to China," Broadcasting Corp of China (BCC) quoted Tai Cheng-yao (戴振耀), deputy director of the Department of Agriculture, as saying. "Through the consultation, we hope to sign an agreement with China on the export of Taiwan fruits to China," Tai said. China made a series of goodwill gestures to Taiwan after two opposition leaders visited Beijing in late April and early May. China's offer included two giant pandas, allowing the import of fruits and letting Chinese tourists visit Taiwan. China said it would open its market to 18 kinds of fruit and exempt tariffs on 12 of them.
■ Politics
KMT, PFP to work together
A Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) official suggested yesterday that the nominees of the KMT and its People First Party (PFP) ally for the year-end city and county chief elections coordinate with each other to produce a joint candidate for each city and county. Liao Feng-teh (廖風德), director of the KMT's Organization and Development Committee, made the suggestion when he spoke on how to coordinate the candidates of the KMT and the PFP. Both parties have decided to start to talk about cooperation in the year-end elections on June 22, when the two parties will have decided their candidates for the elections. Liao said that the KMT has prepared its own integration mechanism for the two parties and that it will consider whether to conduct public and party opinion polls or consult opinion leaders among the candidates of the two parties.
■ Politics
DPP to work on consensus
President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) will invite mayors and commissioners from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) as well as the heads of the DPP chapters in cities and counties around the country to a tea party on Tuesday, a lawmaker said yesterday. Lai Ching-te (賴清德), a DPP legislative whip, said the informal meeting at the Taipei Guest House is aimed at forging intra-party consensus on strategy for the year-end local government chiefs elections. President Chen has organized four similar meetings with DPP legislators since May 18 to explore lawmakers' views on major policy issues.
China might accelerate its strategic actions toward Taiwan, the South China Sea and across the first island chain, after the US officially entered a military conflict with Iran, as Beijing would perceive Washington as incapable of fighting a two-front war, a military expert said yesterday. The US’ ongoing conflict with Iran is not merely an act of retaliation or a “delaying tactic,” but a strategic military campaign aimed at dismantling Tehran’s nuclear capabilities and reshaping the regional order in the Middle East, said National Defense University distinguished adjunct lecturer Holmes Liao (廖宏祥), former McDonnell Douglas Aerospace representative in Taiwan. If
TO BE APPEALED: The environment ministry said coal reduction goals had to be reached within two months, which was against the principle of legitimate expectation The Taipei High Administrative Court on Thursday ruled in favor of the Taichung Environmental Protection Bureau in its administrative litigation against the Ministry of Environment for the rescission of a NT$18 million fine (US$609,570) imposed by the bureau on the Taichung Power Plant in 2019 for alleged excess coal power generation. The bureau in November 2019 revised what it said was a “slip of the pen” in the text of the operating permit granted to the plant — which is run by Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) — in October 2017. The permit originally read: “reduce coal use by 40 percent from Jan.
‘SPEY’ REACTION: Beijing said its Eastern Theater Command ‘organized troops to monitor and guard the entire process’ of a Taiwan Strait transit China sent 74 warplanes toward Taiwan between late Thursday and early yesterday, 61 of which crossed the median line in the Taiwan Strait. It was not clear why so many planes were scrambled, said the Ministry of National Defense, which tabulated the flights. The aircraft were sent in two separate tranches, the ministry said. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday “confirmed and welcomed” a transit by the British Royal Navy’s HMS Spey, a River-class offshore patrol vessel, through the Taiwan Strait a day earlier. The ship’s transit “once again [reaffirmed the Strait’s] status as international waters,” the foreign ministry said. “Such transits by
Taiwan is doing everything it can to prevent a military conflict with China, including building up asymmetric defense capabilities and fortifying public resilience, Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) said in a recent interview. “Everything we are doing is to prevent a conflict from happening, whether it is 2027 or before that or beyond that,” Hsiao told American podcaster Shawn Ryan of the Shawn Ryan Show. She was referring to a timeline cited by several US military and intelligence officials, who said Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) had instructed the Chinese People’s Liberation Army to be ready to take military action against Taiwan
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