The Presidential Office denied a report yesterday that first lady Chow Mei-ching (周美青) would visit Kyushu when a National Palace Museum exhibition goes on display there in October, saying her trip to Japan remains on hold.
Asked about the report, Presidential Office spokesman Ma Wei-kuo (馬瑋國) said there were no plans for such a trip at present.
Chow was scheduled to visit Tokyo on June 22 for the opening ceremony of the exhibition of ancient Chinese treasures from the museum on June 23.
However, her trip was postponed after a diplomatic row erupted over Japanese posters promoting the show that omitted the word “National” from the museum’s name, which Taiwan perceived as a slight to its sovereignty.
Authorities at the Tokyo National Museum resolved the problem in time for the exhibition to open as scheduled on June 24, but the solution came too late for Chow to appear at the show’s Tokyo opening.
However, the door was left open for President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) wife to visit Japan, and the Apple Daily Chinese-language newspaper yesterday reported that she could travel to Kyushu in October when the exhibition is scheduled to open at the Kyushu National Museum in Dazaifu, Fukuoka Prefecture.
The paper said the purpose of her trip would be to cement relations between Taiwan and Japan.
The National Palace Museum announced the loan of 231 artifacts to Japan last year. It is the first time a National Palace Museum collection is on display in another Asian nation, following exhibitions in the US, France, Germany and Austria.
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
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