The US Senate yesterday confirmed Elbridge Colby as US undersecretary of defense for policy, a defense strategist who last year said that a Chinese invasion of Taiwan would “plausibly and gravely” threaten the US.
Colby’s nomination was approved in a 54-45 vote, with former Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell being the only majority party lawmaker to vote against it.
Three Democratic senators supported his confirmation.
Photo: Bloomberg
Colby was deputy assistant secretary of defense for strategy and force development during US President Donald Trump’s first term as president.
He is known for arguing that the US military should prioritize competition with China, and shift its focus from the Middle East and Europe.
Last month, Colby told the US Senate Committee on Armed Services that “Taiwan’s fall would be a disaster for American interests,” referring to a potential invasion by the People’s Republic of China.
He also said that Taiwan’s defense spending was too low to adequately address the threat posed by China.
“I think actually as a proportion of GDP, it’s well below 3 percent,” Colby said on March 4. “I agree with President Trump that they should be more like 10 percent or at least something in that ballpark really focused on their defense.”
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) on March 12 said that the government did “not have the capacity” to spend 10 percent of the country’s GDP annually on national defense.
Additional reporting by Reuters
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or
RSS