An Italian delegation visited Taiwan to discuss potential cooperation in the semiconductor sector, Italian Minister for Business and Made in Italy Adolfo Urso said on Friday.
“I sent a ministry task force in Taiwan, and one also in Seoul, to discuss and illustrate our plan on semiconductors,” Urso said in Pavia, Italy.
Urso said the mission was mostly technical, a sign that Italy is trying to keep the economic and diplomatic tracks as separate as possible.
Photo: Bloomberg
Taiwan has planned to invest about US$400 million in Italy’s chip industry, the Taipei Representative Office in Rome said.
“On semiconductors, Italy has some strategic advantages compared with other EU countries, including manufacturing capacity and research and development,” office head Vincent Tsai (蔡允中) said in an interview.
Tsai, who was appointed to the role in January, said that trade between the two countries increased 13 percent last year, and there are plans to further boost it with the opening of a new representative office later this year in Milan, Italy’s business capital.
China and Taiwan are key trading partners with Italy, which is the third-largest importer of goods from China in the EU, and the fourth-largest exporter of goods to the country, which is a key export destination for luxury brands crucial for its industry.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who came to power less than a year ago, is leaning toward pulling out of an agreement to join China’s Belt and Road Initiative, which has funded US$900 billion in infrastructure projects globally, people familiar with the government’s thinking said.
Italian officials raised the prospect of withdrawal in talks with Taiwan this week, Bloomberg reported.
Italy is the only G7 country that signed up to the infrastructure plan. The deal agreed in 2019 under then-Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte has not led to deeper integration between Italy and China compared with other EU nations.
Italy’s hawkish turn complicates Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) effort to drive a wedge between European countries eager to retain economic relations with Beijing, and the US, which is implementing increasingly confrontational policies. This puts Italy and the EU in a delicate position between the two superpowers.
“Italy is stuck between a rock and a hard place, and what to do with the cooperation pact is a real diplomatic conundrum for Meloni,” Mercator Institute for China Studies analyst Francesca Ghiretti said in an interview. “Renewing it would send a very difficult message to Washington, but not renewing it would put a strain in relations with China.”
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
The Kaohsiung Tourism Bureau audited six hotels in an effort to prevent price gouging ahead of Korean band BTS’ concert tour in the city scheduled for Nov. 19, 21 and 22 this year. The bureau on Friday said that the audits — conducted in response to allegations of unfair pricing posted on social media — found no wrongdoing. These establishments included the local branches of Chateau de Chine, Hotel Nikko, My Humble House, and Grand Hai Lai, it said, adding that the Consumer Protection Commission would have penalized price gougers had the accusations been substantiated. The bureau said the Tourism Development Act
BACK TO WINTER: A strong continental cold air mass would move south on Tuesday next week, bringing colder temperatures to northern and central Taiwan A tropical depression east of the Philippines could soon be upgraded to be the first tropical storm of this year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, adding that the next cold air mass is forecast to arrive on Monday next week. CWA forecaster Cheng Jie-ren (鄭傑仁) said the first tropical depression of this year is over waters east of the Philippines, about 1,867km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), and could strengthen into Tropical Storm Nokaen by early today. The system is moving slowly from northwest to north, and is expected to remain east of the Philippines with little chance of affecting Taiwan,
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
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