MEDIA
Reporters moving to Taiwan
There has been an increase in the number of foreign media companies with bases in Taiwan, as it protects freedom of the press and is a hub in the Indo-Pacific region, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday. The nation’s free circulation of information and respect for diverse opinions also appeals to foreign journalists, ministry spokesman Jeff Liu (劉永健) said. Taiwan ranked 35th in this year’s World Press Freedom Index released by Reporters Without Borders, its highest ranking since 2008, he said. The nation’s Internet freedom was also the highest in the Asia-Pacific region in this year’s Freedom in the World report published by US-based Freedom House, he said. By the end of last month, 174 reporters from 82 international media firms were stationed in Taiwan, up from 81 reporters from 48 companies in March 2016, he said. Taiwan welcomes international media firms and is willing to provide assistance to all journalists, Liu said.
DEFENSE
China balloon crosses Strait
A suspected Chinese weather balloon on Monday floated across the Taiwan Strait, but remained well north of Taiwan, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. It was the third time this month that a Chinese balloon has been reported near Taiwan. Monday’s balloon was detected at 9:09am after crossing the Strait’s median line 67 nautical miles (124km) northwest of Keelung. It was at an altitude of about 4,572m, headed east and disappeared at 11:52am, the ministry said. It said its initial judgement is that it was a weather balloon. Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) had said after the first incident that monsoon winds might have blown the balloon toward Taiwan, and that it might be used to gather meteorological research data.
BEVERAGES
Apple Sidra back on shelves
Apple Sidra has returned to the market seven months after sales of the soda were suspended because of the discovery of mold. Apple Sidra maker Oceanic Beverages Co, Inc said in a statement on Monday that two of its production lines at its Taoyuan factory formally resumed operations on Nov. 16, and its products passed random inspections by the Taoyuan Department of Public Health. The inspections found that the products met hygiene standards and the company’s own control criteria, Oceanic Beverages said. As a result, the department agreed to allow the company to sell the beverage. The Apple Sidra now available in stores was made during trial runs on Oct. 27 or when official production started on Nov. 16, the company said. In April, a customer found white residue in a bottle of Apple Sidra and alerted the local health department. Tests confirmed the presence of mold and yeast in the bottle, leading to the suspension of all three of the Taoyuan factory’s production lines in May.
WEATHER
Colder temperatures arriving
A strong continental cold air mass that sent temperatures plummeting to 14°C to 16°C in northern Taiwan and 17°C to 19°C in southern and eastern Taiwan last night would continue today, the Central Weather Administration said. More cold weather is expected to arrive tomorrow, sending temperatures to lows of 10°C in north and central Taiwan, and 13°C in the south and east, the agency said. The cold, wet weather is expected to ease slightly on Saturday, it added.
Taiwanese were praised for their composure after a video filmed by Taiwanese tourists capturing the moment a magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck Japan’s Aomori Prefecture went viral on social media. The video shows a hotel room shaking violently amid Monday’s quake, with objects falling to the ground. Two Taiwanese began filming with their mobile phones, while two others held the sides of a TV to prevent it from falling. When the shaking stopped, the pair calmly took down the TV and laid it flat on a tatami mat, the video shows. The video also captured the group talking about the safety of their companions bathing
US climber Alex Honnold is to attempt to scale Taipei 101 without a rope and harness in a live Netflix special on Jan. 24, the streaming platform announced on Wednesday. Accounting for the time difference, the two-hour broadcast of Honnold’s climb, called Skyscraper Live, is to air on Jan. 23 in the US, Netflix said in a statement. Honnold, 40, was the first person ever to free solo climb the 900m El Capitan rock formation in Yosemite National Park — a feat that was recorded and later made into the 2018 documentary film Free Solo. Netflix previewed Skyscraper Live in October, after videos
Starting on Jan. 1, YouBike riders must have insurance to use the service, and a six-month trial of NT$5 coupons under certain conditions would be implemented to balance bike shortages, a joint statement from transportation departments across Taipei, New Taipei City and Taoyuan announced yesterday. The rental bike system operator said that coupons would be offered to riders to rent bikes from full stations, for riders who take out an electric-assisted bike from a full station, and for riders who return a bike to an empty station. All riders with YouBike accounts are automatically eligible for the program, and each membership account
A classified Pentagon-produced, multiyear assessment — the Overmatch brief — highlighted unreported Chinese capabilities to destroy US military assets and identified US supply chain choke points, painting a disturbing picture of waning US military might, a New York Times editorial published on Monday said. US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s comments in November last year that “we lose every time” in Pentagon-conducted war games pitting the US against China further highlighted the uncertainty about the US’ capability to intervene in the event of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. “It shows the Pentagon’s overreliance on expensive, vulnerable weapons as adversaries field cheap, technologically
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