Models to keep multilateralism alive exist in the wildMultilateral cooperation can still exist, if organizations focus on a few thingsBy Jose Manuel Barroso / GENEVAFew would deny that there has been a shift away from multilateral cooperation in recent years. My confidence stems from my experience as the chair of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. Gavi exists to save lives and protect health by expanding access to vaccines in lower-income countries. In each case, historic changes needed a catalyst, which is exactly the role that Gavi has played in promoting public health. Jose Manuel Barroso, former president of the European Commission and former prime minister of Portugal, is chair of the board of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

TAIEX up 0.89 percent as TSMC hits record highStaff writer, with CNATaiwanese shares closed higher yesterday as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) hit a record high on reports that the contract chipmaker would raise prices for its advanced chips, even as China staged military exercises near the nation. The TAIEX ended up 254.87 points, or 0.89 percent, at 28,810.89. Turnover on the local main board totaled NT$439.098 billion (US$13.96 billion), Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed. In South Korea, the KOSPI jumped 2.2 percent to 4,220.56, less than 2 points away from its record high early last month, but on pace for its best year since 1999. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was 3.27 percent higher at US$12,560 per tonne, having set a record high of US$12,960 earlier yesterday.

Taiwan slams China’s ‘provocation’‘IRRESPONSIBLE’: Beijing’s constant disruption of the ‘status quo’ in the Taiwan Strait has damaged peace, stability and security in the Indo-Pacific region, MOFA saidStaff writer, with agenciesThe Presidential Office yesterday condemned China’s launch of another military drill around Taiwan, saying such actions are a “unilateral provocation” that destabilizes regional peace and stability. An air defense missile system is deployed next to a Taiwan Air Force Mirage 2000 jet in a hangar at an airbase in Hsinchu yesterday. Ministry of National Defense spokesman Major General Sun Li-fang speaks at a news conference in Taipei yesterday. Photo: CNAThe Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) also condemned China’s military drills and called on Beijing to cease its unprovoked military provocative actions immediately. The exercises began 11 days after the US announced US$11.1 billion in arms sales to Taiwan, the largest-ever weapons package for the nation.

‘Culture Points’ age eligibility to expand next yearStaff writer, with CNAResidents aged 13 to 22 would be eligible to claim NT$1,200 (US$38.27) in cash handouts, known as Culture Points, from Thursday to spend on cultural activities or at related venues, the Ministry of Culture said today. Photo: CNAIt was expanded last year to include those aged 16 to 17, and this year began offering NT$600 in Culture Points to children aged 13 to 15 on a trial basis. At a news conference, Minister of Culture Li Yuan (李遠) said the program would be expanded once again next year by making all Taiwanese residents aged 13 to 22 eligible for NT$1,200 in Culture Points. This year, foreign nationals with alien permanent resident certificates or spouse-based resident visas who met the age requirements were eligible to claim Culture Points. The ministry said that more than 80 percent of those eligible had used their 2025 Culture Points as of today, spending nearly NT$1.5 billion.

MND releases images tracking PLA vessels after drills beginBy Hollie Younger / Staff writer, with CNAThe Ministry of National Defense (MND) today released images of the military tracking China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) movements during the latest round of Chinese drills around Taiwan. The PLA began "Justice Mission 2025" drills today, carrying out live-fire drills, simulated strikes on land and maritime targets, and exercises to blockade the nation's main ports. The exercises are to continue tomorrow, with the PLA announcing sea and air space restrictions for five zones around Taiwan for 10 hours starting from 8:30am. A Chinese J-16 fighter jet is tracked by a Taiwanese F-16V Block 20 jet using Sniper Advanced Targeting Pod AN/AAQ-33 technology today. The jet was equipped with Sniper Advanced Targeting Pod AN/AAQ-33 technology, which enabled it to monitor the Chinese jet.

Status of 278 Chinese spouses without paperwork safe: MACBy Chen Yu-fu and Sam Garcia / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe 278 Chinese spouses who have yet to submit proof that they have given up their Chinese household registration would not lose their Taiwanese identity before they are located, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said today, countering a media report that nearly 1,000 would lose their Taiwanese status on Thursday. The National Immigration Agency (NIA) in early April sent notices to some Chinese spouses requesting that they submit proof of having renounced their Chinese household registration within three months of receiving the notice. Photo: Chen Yu-fu, Taipei TimesAmong the 12,146 Chinese spouses who received the notice, only 278 had yet to submit paperwork as of Friday last week due to an inability to contact them, the MAC said. The government has announced multiple times that their Taiwanese identity would not be revoked before the spouses could be located, it said. The council urged Chinese spouses to contact the NIA if they see any inaccurate reports or have difficulty submitting the required documents.

Hops, malt tariff exemptions pass initial reviewBy Sam Garcia / Staff writer, with CNAThe Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee today advanced a bill that would make malt and hops duty-free, aiming to lower production costs and support the long-term viability of the domestic beer industry. Photo: Taipei TimesThe legislators said they drafted the amendments to support the long-term survival and development of domestic beer brands. Lowering tariffs on malt and hops would cause about a NT$74.35 million (US$2.36 million) loss in tariff revenue, the National Treasury Administration said. However, the tax cut would increase the competitiveness and demand for domestic beer, which is projected to generate an additional NT$169.74 million in tax revenue, the agency said. After subtracting the loss in tariff revenue, the net fiscal benefit is estimated to be NT$95.39 million, it added.

Lai open to addressing legislature, but not taking questionsStaff writer, with CNAPresident William Lai (賴清德) yesterday said that he is willing to deliver a state-of-the-nation address in the legislature, but would not submit to questioning by lawmakers, as it would breach the Constitution. President William Lai speaks in an undated photograph. Photo: Taipei TimesHe was commenting on a stalemate in the legislature over a proposed eight-year special defense budget of NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.81 billion), which has been blocked four times by opposition lawmakers, who have been calling on Lai to answer questions in the legislature. While the KMT has denied that there were such preconditions, Lai said that its continued obstruction without justification raises public doubts. It would be hard for the public to believe that a meeting between Cheng and Xi would not be subject to preconditions, Lai said.

Sexual harassment trial begins for former Disciplinary Court chief justiceBy Yang Kuo-wen and Hollie Younger / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe Disciplinary Court today began the trial of former Disciplinary Court chief justice Lee Po-tao (李伯道), accused of sexually harassing and bullying his female subordinates and a female section chief. Former Disciplinary Court chief justice Lee Po-tao is pictured in an undated photograph. The Judicial Yuan transferred the two cases to the Disciplinary Court, while the Control Yuan impeached Lee. Lee previously served as the chief justice of the Supreme Court and chief justice of the Taichung High Court, before his promotion to chief justice of the Disciplinary Court in October 2020. The Disciplinary Court handles cases for public servants who contravene conduct regulations.

KMT chair to prioritize meeting with Xi next yearBy Sam Garcia / Staff writer, with CNAChinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) today said she plans to visit Beijing and Washington in the first half of next year, but would prioritize Beijing, as meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) would carry significance. Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun speaks in an undated photograph. Meeting with Xi would carry strategic significance and convey important information, so it makes sense to go to Beijing before the US, Cheng said. Discussing the local elections, Cheng said that the KMT still needs to coordinate in Yilan, Hsinchu and Changhua counties, as well as Chiayi and Taichung. Hopefully, the KMT would maintain its leadership in the cities and counties it currently governs, Cheng said, but added that this would be challenging.

Taiwan to expand publicly funded HIV treatment to foreign residentsStaff writer, with CNAThe Centers for Disease Control (CDC) is planning to expand eligibility for publicly funded HIV treatment for foreign nationals next year, although it has not released many details on how the expansion would work. CDC Director-General Lo Yi-chun (羅一鈞) told a press event on Monday last week that subsidy regulations are being revised and eligibility for publicly funded treatment for foreign residents would be expanded. Photo: CNALo at the time said the expansion would initially prioritize foreign nationals holding permanent residency and those under 18, but he offered no other details. When the CDC was asked later in the week about how many more foreign nationals would become eligible for publicly funded treatment, it said it was still assessing the potential impact and "has no clear figure yet." As of late last month, 36,494 Taiwanese and 615 foreign nationals in Taiwan were living with HIV, the CDC said in a written response on Friday.

Taiwan denounces Chinese drills around TaiwanBy Chen Yun and Kayleigh Madjar / Staff reporter, with staff writer and ReutersThe Presidential Office today denounced Beijing's actions as destabilizing, after China's military moved army, naval, air force and rocket force units around Taiwan today. The "Justice Mission 2025" drills are aimed at testing combat readiness and delivering a "stern warning" against moves toward Taiwanese independence, the Chinese Eastern Theater Command said. A map released by the Chinese People's Liberation Army today shows planned drill areas around Taiwan for its "Justice Mission 2025" drills. It also follows a rise in Chinese rhetoric over Beijing's territorial claims, after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested that a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could trigger a military response from Tokyo. The drills "serve as a serious warning to 'Taiwan independence' separatist forces and external interference forces," command spokesperson Shi Yi (施毅) said in a statement.

Taiwan celebrates Christmas, kind of, once again after 25 yearsTaiwan is getting a day off on Christmas for the first time in 25 years. The change comes after opposition parties passed a law earlier this year to add or restore five public holidays, including Constitution Day, which falls on today, Dec. 25. The day marks the 1947 adoption of the constitution of the Republic of China, as the government in Taipei is formally known. Back then the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) governed China from Nanjing. When the KMT, now an opposition party in Taiwan, passed the legislation on holidays, it said that they would help “commemorate the history of national development.” That

Shanghai, Taipei mayors meet at Twin-City ForumBy Kan Meng-lin and Sam Garcia / Staff reporter, with staff writerShanghai Mayor Gong Zheng (龔正) yesterday called on “compatriots” on both sides of the Taiwan Strait to work together toward the “great revival of the Chinese nation,” while Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) touched on democracy at the Taipei-Shanghai Twin-City Forum in Shanghai, giving the municipal-level exchange a distinctly political tone. During the 15-year history of the annual forum, the two cities have cultivated exchanges in science, education and culture, Gong said in his opening remarks. Shanghai Mayor Gong Zheng, on stage, left, and Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an, on stage, right, witness the signing of a memorandum of understanding on exchanges concerning water management and occupational training at the Taipei-Shanghai Twin-City Forum in Shanghai yesterday. In a meeting held prior to the forum, Gong said that “compatriots” on both sides of the Strait aspire for peace, development, cooperation and exchange. Holding the forum with both sides meeting face-to-face amid cross-strait tensions is a kind of strength, Chiang said.

Copper prices hit record as investors bet on tighter times coming next yearBloombergCopper surged to a record in Shanghai and rallied in New York, adding to substantial annual gains as investors bet on tighter global supplies next year, while factoring in the impact of a weaker US dollar. In China, prices gained as much as 4.7 percent to trade near 100,000 yuan (US$14,228) a tonne on the Shanghai Futures Exchange for the first time. Rolls of copper sheeting gleam at a factory which makes copper products in Dongyang, China, on Sept. 5. Earlier this year, Comex copper contracts spiked to a record in anticipation that US President Donald Trump would impose tariffs. On the Comex, copper rose 4.7 percent to settle at US$5.8395 in New York on Friday.