Chunghwa Post on Tuesday is to release a set of stamps featuring two Taiwanse mosques to highlight cultural diversity in the nation, it said.
The two-stamp set features the Taipei Grand Mosque and the Taichung Mosque, with denominations of NT$15 and NT$28 respectively.
The Taipei Grand Mosque in the city’s Daan District (大安) is a municipal heritage site, Chunghwa Post said.
Photo courtesy of Chunghwa Post
The external walls of the wings of the building are framed with arches, while the central building is topped with a golden dome, it said, adding that the mosque is flanked on either side with a 20m-tall minaret.
The Taichung Mosque is in the city’s Nantun District (南屯), where it operates as a center for learning, gathering and prayer for Muslims in the area.
The stamps are to be available at post offices nationwide, the Postal Museum and online, Chunghwa Post said.
Photo: Cheng Wei-chi, Taipei Times
The state-run company is also continuing a trend it set last year by issuing a series of discs etched with the year’s Chinese zodiac sign, which next year is the Ox.
The discs are to be made available on Oct. 5, in gold, silver and copper, the company said.
Chunghwa Post spokesman Kuo Chun-yang (郭純陽) on Friday said that the post office had, before last year, commonly issued zodiac-themed stamps.
“We considered that the zodiac system is unique and should be celebrated with more than themed stamps,” Kuo said.
Last year, Chunghwa Post issued a limited-edition run of discs, which the company was confident would grow in value for collectors, he said.
The etching on this year’s gold discs is based on the NT$13 denomination edition of the post office’s zodiac-themed stamp and is made of pure gold, weighing 10g, Kuo said, adding that it would be limited to 1,500 units and sold for NT$22,000 each.
There are two versions of the silver disc, based on the NT$6 and the NT$13 denomination stamps, Kuo said.
The pure-silver discs weigh 28g each and would be sold for NT$2,150 each, with each version limited to 1,000 units, he said.
The copper discs are limited to 660 units and would be sold for NT$2,680 each, he added.
Taiwan has received more than US$70 million in royalties as of the end of last year from developing the F-16V jet as countries worldwide purchase or upgrade to this popular model, government and military officials said on Saturday. Taiwan funded the development of the F-16V jet and ended up the sole investor as other countries withdrew from the program. Now the F-16V is increasingly popular and countries must pay Taiwan a percentage in royalties when they purchase new F-16V aircraft or upgrade older F-16 models. The next five years are expected to be the peak for these royalties, with Taiwan potentially earning
STAY IN YOUR LANE: As the US and Israel attack Iran, the ministry has warned China not to overstep by including Taiwanese citizens in its evacuation orders The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday rebuked a statement by China’s embassy in Israel that it would evacuate Taiwanese holders of Chinese travel documents from Israel amid the latter’s escalating conflict with Iran. Tensions have risen across the Middle East in the wake of US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran beginning Saturday. China subsequently issued an evacuation notice for its citizens. In a news release, the Chinese embassy in Israel said holders of “Taiwan compatriot permits (台胞證)” issued to Taiwanese nationals by Chinese authorities for travel to China — could register for evacuation to Egypt. In Taipei, the ministry yesterday said Taiwan
POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT: Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the meeting next month, Japanese sources said The holding of a Japan-US leaders’ meeting ahead of US President Donald Trump’s visit to China is positive news for Taiwan, former Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association representative Hiroyasu Izumi said yesterday. After the Liberal Democratic Party’s landslide victory in Japan’s House of Representatives election, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is scheduled to visit the US next month, where she is to meet with Trump ahead of the US president’s planned visit to China from March 31 to April 2 for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the
‘LIKE-MINDED PARTNER’: Tako van Popta said it would be inappropriate to delay signing the deal with Taiwan because of China, adding he would promote the issue Canadian senators have stressed Taiwan’s importance for international trade and expressed enthusiasm for ensuring the Taiwan-Canada trade cooperation framework agreement is implemented this year. Representative to Canada Harry Tseng (曾厚仁) in an interview with the Central News Agency (CNA) said he was increasingly uneasy about Ottawa’s delays in signing the agreement, especially as Ottawa has warmed toward Beijing. There are “no negotiations left. Not only [is it] initialed, we have three versions of the text ready: English, French and Mandarin,” Tseng said. “That tells you how close we are to the final signature.” Tseng said that he hoped Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney