Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) would only attend this weekend’s Taipei-Shanghai Twin City Forum for one morning before returning to Taiwan, the Taipei City Government said yesterday.
After being postponed in September, the forum is scheduled to take place this Saturday and Sunday in Shanghai.
Chiang’s decision to attend the forum only on Sunday morning comes in light of Friday’s random knife attack in Taipei.
Photo: Tung Kuan-yi, Taipei Times
Chiang believes the top priority is to safeguard people’s safety and reassure them by remaining in Taipei as much as possible, the city government said.
However, considering the 15-year history of the forum, Chiang decided to compromise and shorten his trip to Shanghai, it said.
The main delegation would still depart on Saturday as originally scheduled, led by Taipei Deputy Mayor Lin Yi-hua (林奕華), the city said.
After arriving on Saturday afternoon, the delegation is to visit the Mercedes-Benz Arena and Zhongshan Hospital, then meet with the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government and attend a banquet, the city government said.
When the main forum begins at 9am on Sunday, the cities are to sign two memorandums of understanding on water management and educational exchanges.
At 10:30am, the forum would break out into smaller discussion groups focusing on smart healthcare, transportation, healthy aging and more, with representatives from both cities taking part.
A thank-you luncheon that was to be hosted by the Taipei delegation after the forum has reportedly been canceled.
On Sunday afternoon, the delegation plans to visit the Zhangyuan historical area and the Shanghai Zoo to exchange red pandas, and then meet with Taiwanese businesspeople for dinner.
Meanwhile, Chiang on Sunday announced that Taipei would conduct a high-intensity drill at Taipei City Hall MRT Station on Friday.
The drill would not only involve municipal departments, but also require businesses within the drill area to take part, Chiang said today.
The city government has also asked the Taipei Metro and Department of Information Technology to research how to use artificial intelligence to detect potential threats and facilitate rapid response, he said.
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