The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday welcomed two delegations of British and Paraguayan lawmakers who arrived in Taipei earlier in the day.
British lawmaker Bob Stewart, who cochairs the British-Taiwanese All-Party Parliamentary Group, is leading the British delegation of cross-party legislators until Friday, the ministry said in a news release.
The delegation, which is in Taiwan at the government’s invitation, comprises British lawmakers Sarah Atherton, Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi, Afzal Khan, Marie Rimmer and Rob Butler, the other cochair of the UK-Taiwan parliamentary group, the ministry said.
Photo: Yang Cheng-yu, Taipei Times
The group is to meet with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), Premier Chen Chien-ren (陳建仁) and National Security Council Secretary-General Wellington Koo (顧立雄), and attend banquets hosted by Legislative Yuan Speaker You Si-kun and Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮), it said.
Stewart, who is on his second trip to Taiwan, has since becoming the group’s cochair in 2021 shown strong support for the nation, including leading discussions about Taiwanese-British friendship and cooperation in February last year, the ministry said.
Stewart in March 2021 sent a letter to all members of the British House of Lords and House of Commons to voice concerns over China’s growing military threats, it said.
Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
The British government and parliament continue to pay attention to security issues across the Taiwan Strait, support Taiwan’s participation in international organizations and seek opportunities to deepen bilateral relations, it said.
Taiwan and the UK are solid partners who value freedom, democracy, the rule of law and human rights, it said, adding that Taiwan would continue to work with like-minded states, including the UK, to bolster democratic resilience.
Separately, Paraguayan Senator Blas Antonio Llano Ramos and his wife were joined by Paraguayan Senator Fernando Alberto Silva Facetti and member of the Paraguayan Chamber of Deputies Guadalupe Aveiro on a five-day visit.
Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
The delegation is to meet with Wu and You, and attend a banquet hosted by Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Alexander Yui, the ministry said.
The group’s itinerary also includes visits to the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Mainland Affairs Council, the International Cooperation and Development Fund, the Institute for National Defense and Security Research and the Paraguayan embassy, it said.
Llano Ramos, who is visiting Taiwan for the first time, has been a member of parliament for nearly 30 years and has led both chambers of the Paraguayan Congress, it said, adding that Silva Facetti and Aveiro have repeatedly voiced support for Taiwan-Paraguay ties in the country’s legislature.
The trip follows a visit by Chamber of Deputies President Carlos Maria Lopez, who was in Taiwan in January, indicating the South American country’s solid support for the nation, it said.
A domestically developed “suicide drone,” also known as a loitering munition, would be tested and evaluated in July, and could enter mass production next year, Taiwan’s weapons developer said on Wednesday. The yet-to-be-named drone was among nine drone models unveiled by the National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST) on Tuesday. The drone has been dubbed the “Taiwanese switchblade” by Chinese-language media, due to its similarity to the US-made AeroVironment Switchblade 300, which has been used by Ukraine in counterattacks during Russia’s invasion. It has a range of more than 10km, a flight time of more than 15 minutes, and an electro-optical
OFFLINE: People who do not wish to register can get the money from select ATMs using their bank card, ID number and National Health Insurance card number Online registration for NT$6,000 (US$196.32) cash payments drawn from last year’s tax surplus is to open today for eligible people whose national ID or permanent residency number ends in either a zero or a one, the Ministry of Finance said on Monday. Officials from the ministry revealed which days Taiwanese and eligible foreigners would be able to register for the cash payments at a joint news conference with the Ministry of Digital Affairs. Online registration is to open tomorrow for those whose number ends in a two or three; on Friday for those that end in a four or five: on Saturday
Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) officials are investigating why a Starlux Airlines flight to Penang, Malaysia, returned to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport nearly two hours after takeoff yesterday morning. The airline said in a statement that Flight JX721 to Penang took off from Taoyuan airport at 9:20am. “After the dashboard showed a signal of an abnormality in the hydraulic system, the captain followed standard operating procedures and returned the flight to Taoyuan airport for safety precautions,” the airline said, adding that the flight landed safely at the airport at 11:04am. The airline arranged for the passengers to have lunch after the flight landed and
WORKING UP AN APPETITE: Sales at the Rueifong Night Market surged 20 to 30 percent, while seats at Liouhe Night Market were packed until 1am, market officials said South Korean pop band Blackpink’s concerts over the weekend in Kaohsiung helped draw large crowds to local night markets, the Kaohsiung City Government said yesterday. The two concerts on Saturday and Sunday at Kaohsiung National Stadium drew more than 90,000 people. The city government offered NT$50 vouchers to spend locally to concertgoers who showed their ticket stubs. Liouhe Night Market (六合夜市) management committee head Chuang Chi-chang (莊其章) said that crowds over the weekend surged at about 10pm and the market remained packed until 1:30am. “Almost all the seats were filled,” Chuang said. Night market stall owners had stocked up in expectation of an increased number
RSS