Former US undersecretary of state Keith Krach is in Taiwan on a four-day visit aiming to boost economic, scientific and technological ties between Taiwan and the US.
In his roles as chairman of the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue and cochair of the Global Tech Security Commission, Krach is visiting Taiwan from Wednesday to Saturday to meet with senior government officials, tech industry leaders and academics, the institute said in a news release on Tuesday.
They are to discuss global technological security under the Global Tech Security Strategy, through which Krach is to launch the Taiwan Center for Innovation and Prosperity with the goal of enhancing “Taiwan’s prosperity, international standing and sovereignty by offering technological expertise and diplomatic reinforcement,” it said.
Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Krach during the visit also aims to continue expanding Taiwan’s role in the Global Trusted Tech Network of like-minded nations, companies, institutions and leaders to create and adopt trusted technologies, it added.
“Throughout my tenure leading US economic diplomacy, Taiwan was central to our Global Economic Security Strategy for three pivotal reasons,” Krach said in the news release. “First, Taiwan is a beacon of democracy, inspiring nations worldwide; second, Taiwan’s remarkable technological innovations are a testament to the potential of a free society; and third, Taiwan is a true friend and an indispensable partner in championing freedom.”
When Krach traveled to Taiwan in 2020 as undersecretary of state for economic growth, energy and the environment, he became the highest-ranking official in the US Department of State to visit in 41 years.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
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A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Kaohsiung at 1pm today, the Central Weather Administration said. The epicenter was in Jiasian District (甲仙), 72.1km north-northeast of Kaohsiung City Hall, at a depth of 7.8km, agency data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in Kaohsiung and Tainan, where it measured a 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale. It also measured a 3 in parts of Chiayi City, as well as Pingtung, Yunlin and Hualien counties, data showed.
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