■ MILITARY
US unveils missile mix-up
The US Defense Department yesterday announced that it had mistakenly shipped non-nuclear ballistic missile components to Taiwan from a US Air Force base in the state of Wyoming. It said the items have been returned to the US. At a Pentagon news conference, Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne said the misshipped items were four nose cone assemblies for ballistic missiles. They were sent instead of helicopter batteries that had been ordered by Taiwan, he said. Wynne said the matter was under investigation.
■ HEALTH
Dengue fever cases emerge
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday confirmed four more cases of dengue fever infections that were contracted overseas. The latest cases involve a three-year-old boy who recently traveled to Indonesia with his family, two businessmen with operations in Indonesia and an Indonesian national working in Taiwan, CDC officials said. The cases brought the number of overseas dengue fever infections to 18 so far this year, compared with 14 cases recorded during the same period last year, the officials said. Of the 18 cases, nine were contracted in Indonesia, three each originated in Vietnam and the Philippines and one each was contracted in India and Malaysia. The origin of the remaining case was uncertain because the patient traveled to two different countries. Last year, Taiwan recorded 179 cases of dengue fever contracted overseas, with 55 originating in Vietnam and 48 in Indonesia, according to the CDC. CDC officials advised travelers to Southeast Asia to wear long-sleeved shirts and use anti-mosquito repellent.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as
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