The Presidential Office yesterday said that it had appointed for the second year running a former minister as its envoy to this year’s APEC summit in South Korea, one of the few international forums both Taiwan and China take part in.
Former minister of economic affairs Lin Hsin-i (林信義), chairman of the government-backed investment fund Taiwania Capital, would represent Taiwan at the summit, the Presidential Office said in a statement.
Lin, who also led Taiwan’s delegation in 2005 when it was likewise held in South Korea, was the most suitable candidate to represent President William Lai (賴清德), the office said, adding that Lin’s deep familiarity with APEC operations and related policy discussions makes him the most suitable choice to represent Taiwan at this year’s summit.
Photo: Lin Cheng-kun, Taipei Times
Lin previously served as Taiwan’s envoy to APEC in 2005 and last year. His extensive background in both industry and government gives him a comprehensive understanding of Taiwan’s industrial development and global economic trends, the office said.
This year’s APEC summit is to focus on artificial intelligence (AI) and demographic challenges, which align with Lai’s vision of transforming Taiwan into an “AI island” and advancing his “Healthy Taiwan” initiative, it said.
These initiatives include investments in AI chips, smart manufacturing, digital governance and healthcare innovation, it added.
This year’s summit could also be an opportunity for a meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump.
At last year’s summit in Peru, Lin greeted Xi with a wave, but they did not speak. Lin also met with then-US president Joe Biden while in Lima.
Additional reporting by CNA
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
More than half of the bamboo vipers captured in Tainan in the past few years were found in the city’s Sinhua District (新化), while other districts had smaller catches or none at all. Every year, Tainan captures about 6,000 snakes which have made their way into people’s homes. Of the six major venomous snakes in Taiwan, the cobra, the many-banded krait, the brown-spotted pit viper and the bamboo viper are the most frequently captured. The high concentration of bamboo vipers captured in Sinhua District is puzzling. Tainan Agriculture Bureau Forestry and Nature Conservation Division head Chu Chien-ming (朱健明) earlier this week said that the
BREACH OF CONTRACT: The bus operators would seek compensation and have demanded that the manufacturer replace the chips with ones that meet regulations Two bus operators found to be using buses with China-made chips are to demand that the original manufacturers replace the systems and provide compensation for breach of contract, the Veterans Affairs Council said yesterday. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Michelle Lin (林楚茵) yesterday said that Da Nan Bus Co and Shin-Shin Bus Co Ltd have fielded a total of 82 buses that are using Chinese chips. The bus models were made by Tron-E, while the systems provider was CYE Electronics, Lin said. Lin alleged that the buses were using chips manufactured by Huawei subsidiary HiSilicon Co, which presents a national security risk if the
The National Immigration Agency has banned two Chinese from returning to Taiwan, after they published social media content it described as disrespectful to national sovereignty. The agency imposed a two-month ban on a Chinese man surnamed Liang (梁) and a permanent ban on a woman surnamed Yang (楊), an influencer with 23 million followers, in October last year and last week respectively. Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) yesterday said on the sidelines of a legislative meeting that Chinese visitors to Taiwan are required to comply with the rules and regulations governing their entry permits. The government has handled the ban and
RSS