A meeting between Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chair-man Ma Ying-jeou (
Before the meeting between the pan-blue leaders, Ma will first meet with a delegation from the PFP in charge of negotiations on a merger.
Asked about possible topics during the meeting, Ma said "anything can be discussed," including the merger, since the KMT passed a resolution to merge with the PFP last year.
KMT spokeswoman Cheng Li-wen (
The KMT has long been looking forward to such a merger, which was one of the goals laid down by the party's Central Standing Committee last year, Cheng said.
The unification of the two parties is not only the wish of the two parties' authorities, but also the sincere expectation of their supporters and the KMT will do its best to make it happen, the spokeswoman said.
In a move matching the PFP's formation of a panel in charge of merger talks with the KMT, Cheng said Ma has asked KMT Vice Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung (
In order to unify the two parties, Cheng said, "The KMT will treat the PFP with the highest regard and hopefully the merger can be completed before the end of the year."
The PFP, set up in 2000, is a splinter group of the KMT.
Soong is a former KMT secretary-general, and the party's members are former KMT members.
However, the PFP's strength declined after last year's presidential elections, in which Soong teamed up with then-KMT chairman Lien Chan (
The party is now facing the risk of being sidelined after the Dec. 3 local elections in which it won only one county commissioner seat -- in Kinmen -- out of 23 openings up for grabs, and that only thanks to the courtesy of the KMT, which refrained from naming its own candidate in that county.
Many PFP lawmakers have called for a merger with the KMT, which won 14 seats in last Saturday's race and is on the way for a showdown with the DPP in the 2008 presidential race.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Many Japanese couples are coming to Taiwan to obtain donated sperm or eggs for fertility treatment due to conservatism in their home country, Taiwan’s high standards and low costs, doctors said. One in every six couples in Japan is receiving infertility treatment, Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare data show. About 70,000 children are born in Japan every year through in vitro fertilization (IVF), or about one in every 11 children born. Few people accept donated reproductive cells in Japan due to a lack of clear regulations, leaving treatment in a “gray zone,” Taichung Nuwa Fertility Center medical director Wang Huai-ling (王懷麟)
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
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