The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) has proposed a budget of NT$30.4 billion (US$993.6 million) for fiscal 2023, an increase of NT$1.52 billion from this year, due to an increase in planned international exchanges, the ministry said in its budget report to the Legislative Yuan.
The ministry laid out plans for more international collaboration, as well as greater participation in international conferences and exchanges — the latter seeing an increase of NT$176 million in projected spending for a total of NT$2.14 billion.
The money would go toward participation in international organizations, the hosting of and participation in international exchanges, and the hosting and reception of international dignitaries, the report said.
Photo: AP
The ministry expects to host 2,368 meetings with foreign guests next year — 304 more than this year.
The planned meetings would involve 185 visits from Africa, 420 visits from the Asia-Pacific region, 444 visits from Europe, 843 visits from the US or Canada, and 253 visits from Central and South America.
The ministry also plans to host 38 people from UN-affiliated organizations, eight from the WTO, 135 from international media, 34 representatives of foreign non-governmental organizations, and eight on visits related to improving the nation’s information-security infrastructure.
The budget for visiting dignitaries would be spent on airline tickets, meals and accommodation, transportation within Taiwan, insurance and other related costs, it said.
The budget for cooperation with and assistance for foreign countries would account for NT$14.43 billion — roughly half of the proposed budget and an increase of NT$1.75 billion over this year.
New areas of spending in this field would include projects with Lithuania, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and other countries on bolstering democratic resilience, as well as training semiconductor talent.
A total of NT$2.1 billion has been allocated for international aid and reconstruction assistance in response to major disasters.
The ministry has proposed a special budget of NT$1.8 billion to assist Ukraine with refugee resettlement and post-war recovery.
In related news, the Cabinet’s Ill-gotten Party Assets Settlement Committee has submitted a budget of NT$51.67 million for next year — a decrease of NT$460,000 from this year.
The committee submitted its budget last week alongside other government bodies, ahead of a legislative review, which is to take place this month.
The committee’s proposed budget comprises NT$38.68 million for general administrative expenses, NT$11.56 million for handling ill-gotten party assets it finds in its investigations, a reserve fund of NT$400,000, an overseas travel budget of NT$425,000 and a budget of NT$600,000 for incentives to aid investigations.
The committee said it plans to visit countries in Europe next year to “observe how other countries have dealt with ill-gotten party assets, and how they have promoted transitional justice efforts.”
It said it would “learn from the experiences of governments and civic organizations in different countries and their design of laws and implementation of policies related to” the issues.
Each country in Europe handled its democratization process differently, so it would be useful to observe those differences and learn from them, it said.
The proposed budget includes NT$600,000 for incentives to help the committee investigate ill-gotten party assets, which it said is in accordance with Article 13 of the Act Governing the Settlement of Ill-gotten Properties by Political Parties and Their Affiliate Organizations (政黨及其附隨組織不當取得財產處理條例).
The committee from January to June investigated 15 cases following tip-offs from whistle-blowers and petitions, Executive Yuan data showed.
Taiwan would benefit from more integrated military strategies and deployments if the US and its allies treat the East China Sea, the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea as a “single theater of operations,” a Taiwanese military expert said yesterday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a researcher at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said he made the assessment after two Japanese military experts warned of emerging threats from China based on a drill conducted this month by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Eastern Theater Command. Japan Institute for National Fundamentals researcher Maki Nakagawa said the drill differed from the
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
A rally held by opposition parties yesterday demonstrates that Taiwan is a democratic country, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that if opposition parties really want to fight dictatorship, they should fight it on Tiananmen Square in Beijing. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) held a protest with the theme “against green communists and dictatorship,” and was joined by the Taiwan People’s Party. Lai said the opposition parties are against what they called the “green communists,” but do not fight against the “Chinese communists,” adding that if they really want to fight dictatorship, they should go to the right place and face
A 79-year-old woman died today after being struck by a train at a level crossing in Taoyuan, police said. The woman, identified by her surname Wang (王), crossed the tracks even though the barriers were down in Jhongli District’s (中壢) Neili (內壢) area, the Taoyuan Branch of the Railway Police Bureau said. Surveillance footage showed that the railway barriers were lowered when Wang entered the crossing, but why she ventured onto the track remains under investigation, the police said. Police said they received a report of an incident at 6:41am involving local train No. 2133 that was heading from Keelung to Chiayi City. Investigators