Outgoing German Institute Taipei Director-General Thomas Prinz on Wednesday bid farewell to Taiwan, saying that its people can be proud of their accomplishments in the areas of freedom and democracy.
In a farewell video posted on Facebook, Prinz said that it is time for him to say goodbye, as his three-year tenure in Taiwan has come to an end.
He expressed gratitude for the hospitality accorded to him by Taiwanese since he took office in August 2018 as head of the institute, which represents German interests in Taiwan in the absence of official diplomatic ties.
Over the past three years, Prinz said he had traveled to “many parts of the beautiful islands,” and had the wonderful experience of meeting with students, academics, artists, businesspeople and politicians.
“The Taiwanese can be proud of their achievements, of their democracy, of their freedom,” he wrote.
Prinz said that he had been happy to be part of bilateral projects and initiatives that helped improve the partnership between Taiwan and Germany.
As he prepares to depart Taipei next week to take up his next diplomatic post, in Nepal, Prinz said he hoped the relationship between Taiwan and Germany would endure forever.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Taiwan and Germany signed seven agreements during Prinz’s tenure, including a new air transport agreement this month.
To honor Prinz’s contribution to the growth of the bilateral relations, Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) on July 16 awarded him the Grand Medal of Diplomacy.
Prinz is to be succeeded by Jorg Polster, who has been head of economic affairs and globalization at the German embassy in India.
Residents have called on the Taipei City Government to reconsider its plan to demolish a four-decades-old pedestrian overpass near Daan Forest Park. The 42-year-old concrete and steel structure that serves as an elevated walkway over the intersection of Heping and Xinsheng roads is to be closed on Tuesday in preparation for demolition slated for completion by the end of the month. However, in recent days some local residents have been protesting the planned destruction of the intersection overpass that is rendered more poetically as “sky bridge” in Chinese. “This bridge carries the community’s collective memory,” said a man surnamed Chuang
MILITARY AID: Taiwan has received a first batch of US long-range tactical missiles ahead of schedule, with a second shipment expected to be delivered by 2026 The US’ early delivery of long-range tactical ballistic missiles to Taiwan last month carries political and strategic significance, a military source said yesterday. According to the Ministry of National Defense’s budget report, the batch of military hardware from the US, including 11 sets of M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and 64 MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems, had been scheduled to be delivered to Taiwan between the end of this year and the beginning of next year. However, the first batch arrived last month, earlier than scheduled, with the second batch —18 sets of HIMARS, 20 MGM-140 missiles and 864 M30
Representative to the US Alexander Yui delivered a letter from the government to US president-elect Donald Trump during a meeting with a former Trump administration official, CNN reported yesterday. Yui on Thursday met with former US national security adviser Robert O’Brien over a private lunch in Salt Lake City, Utah, with US Representative Chris Stewart, the Web site of the US cable news channel reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “During that lunch the letter was passed along, and then shared with Trump, two of the sources said,” CNN said. O’Brien declined to comment on the lunch, as did the Taipei
COGNITIVE WARFARE: An internal security memo said China has launched a propaganda campaign to stir up fear that the US would treat Taiwan as a ‘sacrificial piece’ Taiwan must show it is determined to defend itself no matter who wins the US presidency, Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) said yesterday as the US election campaign entered its final hours. Former US president Donald Trump — the Republican presidential candidate, who was neck and neck in the polls with US Vice President Kamala Harris of the Democratic Party — has made comments on the campaign trail that Taiwan should pay to be protected and also accused it of stealing US semiconductor business. Taiwan has faced a sustained military pressure campaign from Beijing over the past five years, including