President William Lai (賴清德) has ordered special measures be implemented to stabilize the prices of certain essential goods and gasoline, while also stabilizing the local stock market, the Presidential Office said yesterday amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran.
At a national security meeting on Wednesday, Lai instructed the Cabinet to assess all potential risks linked to the ongoing conflict, make contingency plans and take steps to minimize the war’s repercussions on livelihoods, the office said.
Lai also at a routine military meeting at the Presidential Office yesterday reiterated the need for the national security team to keep up with the latest developments in the Middle East, it said.
Photo: screen grab from the Presidential Office’s Flickr page
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) chaired a meeting of Cabinet officials on the implications of the Israel-Iran conflict, and at the weekly Cabinet meeting yesterday he told ministers to be on high alert for international developments, Executive Yuan spokesperson Michelle Lee (李慧芝) said.
Cho directed Vice Premier Cheng Li-chiun (鄭麗君) and the Price Stabilization Committee to monitor fluctuations in the prices of gasoline and essential goods, as well as volatility on the stock market, Lee said.
The committee was authorized to implement measures to stabilize prices should the need arise, she said.
Cho told the Ministry of National Defense to increase the vigilance of the armed forces to safeguard national security and regional stability, she added.
The premier told the Coast Guard Administration to protect the legitimate interests of Taiwanese fishers, and bolster its efforts to combat smuggling and human trafficking, Lee said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has already taken steps to protect the safety of Taiwanese residing in or visiting at-risk regions of the Middle East, Cho was cited by Lee as saying.
The Ministry of the Interior was ordered to collaborate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to monitor the safety of foreign nationals, embassies, representative offices and other organizations in Taiwan, she said.
Cho told the Ministry of the Interior and Ministry of Justice to guard against disturbances or incidents that pose a threat to law and order, and the public’s peace of mind, she added.
Separately, a Taiwanese woman stranded during a visit to Iran following Israel’s attack on the nation spoke of the chaotic scenes she had witnessed and the exodus of people from Tehran after reaching Turkey late on Monday.
Kang Cheng-hsuan (康承暄), 24, said she started her journey in Isfahan, southern Iran, on Sunday, first heading to Tehran to buy a bus ticket to leave the country.
However, Kang said she heard explosions upon her arrival in the Iranian capital and estimated there were more than 3,000 people trying to leave.
Kang spent four hours to obtain a ticket to the northwest of the country, she said.
Despite the explosions and smoke, Kang said that she remained calm because “local residents are still managing to live a normal life, and media reports said the attacks were mainly targeting government buildings.”
She made it across the border to Turkey just before midnight on Monday and then took another bus to Istanbul, where she booked a seat on a flight departing for Bangkok yesterday.
Additional reporting by Chung Li-hua and CNA
“China is preparing to invade Taiwan,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an exclusive interview with British media channel Sky News for a special report titled, “Is Taiwan ready for a Chinese invasion?” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today in a statement. The 25-minute-long special report by Helen Ann-Smith released yesterday saw Sky News travel to Penghu, Taoyuan and Taipei to discuss the possibility of a Chinese invasion and how Taiwan is preparing for an attack. The film observed emergency response drills, interviewed baseball fans at the Taipei Dome on their views of US President
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
ECONOMIC BENEFITS: The imports from Belize would replace those from Honduras, whose shrimp exports have dropped 67 percent since cutting ties in 2023 Maintaining ties with Taiwan has economic benefits, Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials said yesterday, citing the approval of frozen whiteleg shrimp imports from Belize by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an example. The FDA on Wednesday approved the tariff-free imports from Belize after the whiteleg shrimp passed the Systematic Inspection of Imported Food, which would continue to boost mutual trade, the ministry said. Taiwan’s annual consumption of whiteleg shrimps stands at 30,000 tonnes, far exceeding domestic production, the ministry said. Taiwan used to fill the gap by importing shrimps from Honduras, but purchases slumped after Tegucigalpa severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan
The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a southwestern extension of the Sanying MRT Line from New Taipei to Bade District (八德) in Taoyuan, with a goal of starting construction by late 2026. The 4.03-kilometer extension, featuring three new stations, will run from the current terminus at Yingtao Fude Station (LB12) in New Taipei City to Dannan Station (LB14), where it will connect with Taoyuan’s Green Line, New Taipei City Metro Corp said in a statement. This extension will follow the completion of core Sanying Line, a 14.29-kilometer medium-capacity system linking Tucheng (土城), Sansia (三峽)
RSS