An international alliance of parliamentarians is to hold its annual summit in Taipei in July, bringing legislators from more than 20 countries to Taiwan, Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said on Tuesday.
In a pre-recorded clip aired during the Copenhagen Democracy Summit, Wu announced that the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) would hold the summit this summer in Taipei.
The event is expected to bring “the largest-ever delegation of foreign members of parliaments to Taiwan,” Wu said in the 40-second clip.
Photo: CNA
Taiwan was part of the summit’s agenda on Tuesday, which included brief pre-recorded addresses from President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and incoming president William Lai (賴清德).
Meanwhile, the IPAC and the Alliance of Democracies Foundation on Tuesday issued a joint statement titled “Free World Pledge Supporting Democratic Taiwan,” in which they called on governments to promote deeper ties with Taiwan and to pursue a policy of deterrence against Chinese coercion.
The Copenhagen Democracy Summit, co-organized by the IPAC and the foundation, was being held on Tuesday and yesterday at the Royal Danish Playhouse.
Formed in 2020, the IPAC has more than 240 members from 27 legislatures and the European Parliament. It is an international, cross-party alliance of parliamentarians from democratic countries focused on relations with the People’s Republic of China.
Its purpose is to create a coordinated response to China on global trade, security and human rights issues.
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
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