■ POLITICS
KMT upgrades Web site
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday launched the latest version of its official Web site, while seeking to attract younger supporters by setting up a Web department. The party changed the design of its official Web site, www.kmt.org.tw, enhanced its search engine function and urged visitors to share their opinions by participating in online polls. KMT Secretary-General Wu Den-yi (吳敦義) told a press conference that the party would host many online activities to increase its interaction with the younger generation.
■ IMMIGRATION
Rules revised for spouses
The Ministry of the Interior yesterday passed revisions to Regulations Governing Visiting, Residence and Permanent Residence of Aliens (外國人停留居留及永久居留辦法) to allow the Tibetan spouses of Taiwanese nationals and children holding an Identity Certificate — a travel document issued by the Indian government to Tibetans living in exile in India — to apply for residency. Under the current law, only foreign spouses holding valid passports may apply for residency. The revision will be sent to the Cabinet for final approval before taking effect.
■ DIPLOMACY
Speaker announces trip
Upon his return from the US yesterday after attending US President Barack Obama’s inauguration, Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) announced he will depart for Europe next month, when he will deliver a speech to the European Parliament. The speech will focus on Taiwan’s democratic achievements and contributions to cross-strait peace, he added. Wang said the European trip would also take him to Belgium, Italy and to the Holy See.
‘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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