Former deputy minister of national defense Chang Che-ping (張哲平) on Wednesday denied he had improper contact with Chinese officials after a report in the Chinese-language Mirror Media said that he was part of an espionage probe.
Chang, who is the head of the National Defense University, was deputy minister of national defense from July 2019 to last month, and was previously commander of the air force.
Chang had dined with and received gifts from a Hong Kong-based businessperson surnamed Hsieh (謝), the Mirror Media report said on Wednesday.
The multiyear investigation by the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office and the National Security Bureau is in the final stages, it said.
Investigators uncovered multiple cases of contact between Chinese officials and high-ranking Taiwanese military officers, including generals and colonels from all branches of service, it said, adding that the probe had not yet determined if Beijing had successfully turned any of the officers or obtained secret information from them.
Citing sources involved in security matters, the report said that Hsieh had been active in Taiwan since 2012, and that the plot to turn military personnel had been discovered during a separate national security investigation, which also revealed connections to Hsieh.
Hsieh was tasked by the Chinese Central Military Commission to develop a spy network in Taiwan, and had attempted to make contact with retired officers at social events, it said.
Hsieh had reportedly met with Chang on several occasions, including at a restaurant in New Taipei City’s Sindian District (新店), it said.
The potentially improper contacts include meals and meetings, and Chang’s wife had traveled to Hong Kong with Hsieh, it said.
Chang said the report is based on “sheer speculation” and that his wife’s travels in China were paid out of pocket.
He had followed military ethics guidelines at all social events and in interactions with classmates, retired colleagues and friends, he said, adding that he “absolutely committed no illegalities in speech or action.”
A Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office spokesperson confirmed the existence of such an investigation, but said that Chang was not listed as a defendant in the case.
NATIONAL SECURITY: Authorities are working to confirm the identities of the military personnel involved and investigating possible illegal conduct and regulatory violations Authorities are probing possible national security implications after Kinmen police and immigration officers on Sunday found a Chinese woman allegedly posing as a tourist while engaging in prostitution involving more than 10 military personnel. The woman, surnamed Chen (陳), has since been deported, authorities said, adding that investigators are still working to confirm the identities of those implicated, as the records only listed code names and aliases. The case stemmed from a report received by the Kinmen District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday last week from the Jinhu Precinct of the Kinmen County Police Bureau. On Sunday, police, along with the National Immigration
GLOBALGIVING: ‘ Caving to external pressure is not acceptable for an organization that has cultivated justice reform and human rights for 30 years,’ one NGO said A slew of non-government organizations (NGOs) have withdrawn from the GlobalGiving fundraising platform after it announced it would use “Chinese Taipei” instead of “Taiwan” from next month. The Taiwan Good Rice Association wrote on Facebook on Friday that it was informed on April 28 via a teleconference call of the change, which was made because the platform wanted to operate in China. Taiwan Good Rice is to terminate all cooperative relationships with GlobalGiving in response to the platform’s “unilateral and non-negotiable” decision to remove references to Taiwan, the NGO said. “Taiwan is in the official name of Taiwan Good Rice Association and the
HEAVY WEATHER: Typhoon Jangmi is due to crash straight into the Ryukyus as airlines look to shift flights to larger aircraft or cancel flights to Okinawa entirely Taiwan’s international air carriers announced flight adjustments over the weekend as Typhoon Jangmi is forecast to hit the Ryukyu Islands today and tomorrow. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) upgraded Jangmi from a tropical storm to a typhoon at 8am yesterday, with the eye located 580km south of Naha city. It was moving north at 19kph. Today, China Airlines’ CI-120, CI-121, CI-122 and CI-123 flights between Taoyuan and Naha, Okinawa, have been canceled as well as CI-132 and CI-133 between Kaohsiung and Naha. EVA Air’s BR-112, BR-113, BR-186 and BR-185 flights between Taoyuan and Naha are also canceled. Low-cost carrier Tigerair Taiwan canceled IT-230,
MULTIPRONGED APPROACH: China has sought to pressure Palau across a number of fronts, but the island nation has staunchly resisted overtures to ditch Taiwan Palau has been firm in backing Taiwan despite Chinese pressure that uses tourism economics, cyberattacks and criminal infiltration as tools to threaten the Pacific ally into renouncing its recognition of Taiwan as a sovereign state. The Presidential Office yesterday announced that Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) would visit Palau from Saturday to Wednesday next week at the invitation of Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr. Whipps in April said in an interview that China had outspokenly asked Palau to “denounce Taiwan.” “And we have said: ‘We have no enemies, but nobody tells us who our friends are,’” he said. Whipps has told reporters multiple times
RSS