The supervisory board of Deutsche Post AG on Monday picked Frank Appel to lead the mail and global logistics company after his predecessor resigned last week amid a growing tax evasion investigation that has gripped Germany.
The board said it unanimously appointed the 46-year-old to replace Zumwinkel, and that his contract would run through Oct. 31, 2012. Appel's appointment is immediate.
Zumwinkel's contact was set to end in November.
Appel has been a member of the company's management board since 2002 and had overseen the company's logistics and international mail business.
The company also agreed to extend the contract of chief financial officer John Allan, who had also been a likely contender for the top job, by two years until 2010.
Zumwinkel's home was raided on Thursday by police and tax investigators, with television cameras in tow, and prosecutors said he was suspected of evading more than 1 million euros (US$1.5 million) in taxes through investments in Liechtenstein -- allegations that came as part of a probe of suspected tax evaders.
More raids were conducted across the country yesterday ahead a visit by Prime Minister Otmar Hasler of Liechtenstein.
Meanwhile, Crown Prince Alois accused Germany yesterday of launching an attack on the Liechtenstein's sovereignty by paying an informer for bank details in the tax fraud probe.
"Germany has clearly failed to understand how one behaves towards a friendly state. We are a small country and we want good relations with our neighbours but we are also a sovereign state," the prince told a press conference aired on German television.
"Germany will not solve its problems with its tax payers by attacking Liechtenstein. Germany has the worst tax system in the world," he said.
The US government has signed defense cooperation agreements with Japan and the Philippines to boost the deterrence capabilities of countries in the first island chain, a report by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The main countries on the first island chain include the two nations and Taiwan. The bureau is to present the report at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee tomorrow. The US military has deployed Typhon missile systems to Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture and Zambales province in the Philippines during their joint military exercises. It has also installed NMESIS anti-ship systems in Japan’s Okinawa
‘WIN-WIN’: The Philippines, and central and eastern European countries are important potential drone cooperation partners, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung said Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) in an interview published yesterday confirmed that there are joint ventures between Taiwan and Poland in the drone industry. Lin made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper). The government-backed Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance and the Polish Chamber of Unmanned Systems on Wednesday last week signed a memorandum of understanding in Poland to develop a “non-China” supply chain for drones and work together on key technologies. Asked if Taiwan prioritized Poland among central and eastern European countries in drone collaboration, Lin
The Chien Feng IV (勁蜂, Mighty Hornet) loitering munition is on track to enter flight tests next month in connection with potential adoption by Taiwanese and US armed forces, a government source said yesterday. The kamikaze drone, which boasts a range of 1,000km, debuted at the Taipei Aerospace and Defense Technology Exhibition in September, the official said on condition of anonymity. The Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology and US-based Kratos Defense jointly developed the platform by leveraging the engine and airframe of the latter’s MQM-178 Firejet target drone, they said. The uncrewed aerial vehicle is designed to utilize an artificial intelligence computer
Renewed border fighting between Thailand and Cambodia showed no signs of abating yesterday, leaving hundreds of thousands of displaced people in both countries living in strained conditions as more flooded into temporary shelters. Reporters on the Thai side of the border heard sounds of outgoing, indirect fire yesterday. About 400,000 people have been evacuated from affected areas in Thailand and about 700 schools closed while fighting was ongoing in four border provinces, said Thai Rear Admiral Surasant Kongsiri, a spokesman for the military. Cambodia evacuated more than 127,000 villagers and closed hundreds of schools, the Thai Ministry of Defense said. Thailand’s military announced that
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