Ko seeks to win big by rehashing trade issueBy Wu Hai-ruei 吳海瑞Convincing voters who remember the debate over the cross-strait service trade agreement a decade ago, as well as the flaws in the legislative process surrounding it at the time, will be difficult. South Korea had not even started negotiations until 2012, but it quickly came up with the English version of an FTA with China, and the official signing was just around the corner. The Legislative Yuan approved the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) in August 2010, and was still debating the service trade agreement and goods trade agreement. Plus, South Korea’s trade volume reached a record high of US$1.415 trillion last year, which was almost 1.6 times Taiwan’s trade volume of US$0.9075 trillion, instead of the huge differential of 1.9 to three times predicted by Kuan — and has been shrinking. This is why Ma wanted to rush the service trade agreement through without review, sparking the 2014 Sunflower movement.

Stephen M. Young On Taiwan: Further musings on Taiwan’s fate, in the shadow of UkraineThe ongoing war in Ukraine, precipitated by the dictatorial Russian leader Vladimir Putin, has been a disaster of monumental proportions. So how do we apply the paradigm of Putin’s Ukraine misadventure to the island state of Taiwan? First, Taiwan poses a very different military challenge to the Putin model of aggression against Ukraine. Like the odious Putin, Mr. Xi has grandiose ambitions to rule all he surveys for the rest of his life. It is all well and good for Mr. Xi to ramble on about “resolving” the Taiwan question in his lifetime.

Gasoline prices drop as diesel prices increaseBy Chen Cheng-hui / Staff reporterGasoline prices are to drop NT$0.1 per liter this week, while the cost of diesel fuel is to increase by NT$0.2 per liter, CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) separately announced yesterday. Crude oil prices moved down last week on market concerns that the European and US central banks might continue to raise interest rates, which would weaken energy demand, the companies said. Oil prices were also affected by a larger-than-expected fall in the US commercial crude oil inventories last week, they added. The price of premium diesel is to rise to NT$27.1 per liter at CPC stations and to NT$26.9 at Formosa pumps this week, they said. The company is also to keep liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices unchanged for retail and industrial users this month, but LNG prices for power generation users, such as Taiwan Power Co (台電), are to drop 5 percent, CPC said.

HK leader warns of ‘resistance’ on anniversaryAFP, HONG KONGHong Kong must guard against “destructive forces engaging in soft resistance,” Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee (李家超) said yesterday, as the territory marked the 26th anniversary of its handover from British to Chinese rule. Police question a man in Victoria Park in Hong Kong yesterday. Photo: AFPEx-security chief turned leader Lee said that Hong Kong was “largely stable” now, but was still being targeted by countries that oppose China’s rise. “There are also destructive forces engaging in soft resistance hidden within Hong Kong,” he said during a speech at an event marking the anniversary. Yoshiaki Ogawa, known for his coverage in Hong Kong, was later interviewed for about an hour, it said.

“The European Council opposes any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion. It reconfirms the EU’s consistent ‘one China policy,’” the leaders’ statement said. European Council President Charles Michel, left, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen talk to reporters at an EU summit in Brussels on Friday. The EU would also seek to ensure a level playing field with China, so that trade and the economic relationship can be balanced, reciprocal and mutually beneficial, the leaders said. Taiwan would continue to deepen exchanges and cooperation with EU members and like-minded democratic partners and jointly safeguard regional peace, stability and prosperity, it added.

Panama advance, Costa Rica heldAFP, NEW YORKPanama on Friday moved into the quarter-finals of the CONCACAF Gold Cup with a 2-1 win over Martinique after Costa Rica and El Salvador produced a frantic, but goalless draw. Martinique, surprisingly, made eight changes from the team who had beaten El Salvador in their opening game and faced relentless pressure from Panama from the outset. El Salvador’s Leonardo Menjivar leaps over Kendall Waston of Costa Rica during their CONCACAF Gold Cup match at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey, on Friday. Joshua Perez’s long-range effort was tipped wide by Costa Rica goalkeeper Kevin Chamorro, while at the other end veteran Celso Borges’ thunderbolt from outside the box brought a fine save out of Mario Gonzalez. Costa Rica threw centerhalf Kendall Waston into attack and he had the ball in the net with a delicate flick, but the effort was ruled out for offside.

Ministry extends visa-free entry for three countriesStaff writer, with CNAThe trial visa-free entry program for tourists from Thailand, Brunei and the Philippines would be extended for another year, from Aug. 1 to July 31 next year, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Friday. The decision to extend visa-free entry for citizens of the three countries was made following a review by agencies at a meeting on April 25, the ministry said in a statement. “Considering the need to revive mutual bilateral exchanges and tourism in the post-pandemic era, the participating agencies decided to extend the trial visa-free entry measure for one year for nationals of Thailand, Brunei and the Philippines,” the ministry said. Photo: Yang Cheng-yu, Taipei TimesThe ministry first granted visa-free entry to tourists from Thailand and Brunei on Aug. 1, 2016. “We will also continue to communicate with the governments of related countries to improve visa treatment for Taiwan nationals and make their overseas travel more convenient,” the ministry said.

Japanese are hiring agents to quit jobs for themBy Yuri Kageyama / AP, TOKYOIn Japan, a nation reputed for loyalty to companies and lifetime employment, people who job-hop are often viewed as quitters, and that is considered shameful. Enter “taishoku daiko,” or “job-leaving agents.” Dozens of such services have sprung up in the past few years to help people who simply want out. “Quitting would be a betrayal.”Founded in 2020, Guardian, a taishoku daiko service, has helped many people, mostly in their 20s and 30s, escape less painfully from jobs they want to quit. With Guardian’s help he was able to quit in 45 minutes. Niino laughs, recounting how one of his own employees used a rival agency to resign and then went on to set up his own taishoku daiko company.

EDITORIAL: PLA tableware ban is just a first stepThe Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) on Thursday announced a ban on food containers made from polylactide (PLA) at eight venues that is to come into effect on Aug. 1, the first step in banning the polymer, which is typically made from plant starch. PLA, one of the three most common bioplastics, is typically made from the starch found in sugarcane, corn, sugar beet and cassava. As the EPA said, Taiwan has no composting facility for recycling PLA. Therefore, the EPA’s ban on PLA in certain venues can be seen as a step toward reaching its plastic reduction goal. However, PLA food containers at the eight venues are estimated to account for less than 10 percent of all PLA products in Taiwan, so there is still a long way to go.

At an avocado orchard in a kibbutz in central Israel, a tractor slowly pulls a device through the trees. A farmer drives a tractor pulling a pollination device at an avocado orchard near the Eyal kibbutz in the center of Israel on April 24. Photo: AFPSuch artificial pollination can help boost crop yields to feed the world’s growing population, BloomX founder and CEO Thai Sade said. Green Wadi chairman Shmuel Friedman, whose company is and agricultural consultancy that offers its services to countries in Africa, Asia and the Gulf, said there is demand for Israeli technology and expertise. “We have a good reputation in agriculture,” said Friedman, a former Israeli Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development official.

EDITORIAL: Helping Palau helps TaiwanThe Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday said that it would continue to provide assistance to Palau for tourism and infrastructure, with the Pacific ally under pressure from China to break ties with Taiwan. China Airlines has two direct flights per week between Taiwan and Palau, but, despite always being full, they cannot meet tourism needs. If the flights are always full, there is clearly demand for travel to Palau, so promotional work should be straightforward. The government could pay Taiwanese to work on infrastructure projects in Palau at no cost to the Palauan government. Taiwan could cooperate with those agencies to help develop and fund infrastructure in Palau.

Noes the West should give ChinaBy Joseph BoscoChina has a long tradition of fascination with numbers. However, there were deliverables from the US side, at least enough to give Beijing more talking points in its false narrative that Washington ever concurred with its “one China” principle. The expanded list now included “five noes and four no intentions to”: Respect the PRC system and do not seek to change it; do not seek a “new cold war”; do not seek to oppose China by strengthening alliances; do not support Taiwan independence; and do not advocate “two Chinas” or “one China, one Taiwan.”The four “no intentions to” were: No intention for conflict with China; no intention to seek “decoupling” from China; no intention to obstruct China’s economic development; and no intention to contain China. China can be expected to expand its allegations of bad faith and deal breaking by US presidents. The US and the West should stop suggesting that they are indifferent to the nature of Beijing’s communist system and declare it the problem that it is.

Mexico defeat Haiti to secure spot in quarter-finals, Qatar held by HondurasAFP, MIAMIMexico on Thursday secured their spot in the CONCACAF Gold Cup knockout stage with a game to spare after beating Haiti 3-1 in Glendale, Arizona. The win, with all the goals coming in the second half, means Mexico lead Group B with six points from two games, with Haiti three points behind. Qatar and Honduras both have a point each after they drew 1-1 after a stoppage-time equalizer from the Central Americans. Mexico’s Santiago Gimenez, left, scores past Haiti goalkeeper Alexandre Pierre in their CONCACAF Gold Cup Group B match in Glendale, Arizona, on Thursday. Qatar took the lead against Honduras in the eighth minute when Tameem Mansour rose to head home an excellent cross from Mostafa Meshaal.

Extreme rain over mountains alarming scientistsFor every degree Celsius the world warms, severe precipitation at higher elevation increases by 15 percent, study showsAPA warming world is transforming some major snowfalls into extreme rain over mountains instead, somehow worsening both dangerous flooding like the type that devastated Pakistan last year as well as long-term water shortages, a new study found. Heavy rain in mountains causes a lot more problems than big snow, including flooding, landslides and erosion, scientists said. A researcher said flooding could occur more frequently as a warming world transforms some major snowfalls into heavy rain over mountains instead. That includes much of the American West, where Ombadi said “it’s very pronounced,” as well as parts of the Appalachian Mountains. Photo: AFPAbout one in four people on Earth live in an area close enough to the mountains or downhill that extreme rain and flooding would hit them, Ombadi said.

Chipmakers struggle amid geopolitical turmoil: CEOReuters, SHANGHAIGeopolitics and the national security concerns of some countries are threatening the globalization of the world’s chip industry and its future growth, the chairman and acting CEO of memorychip maker Yangtze Memory Technologies Co (YMTC, 長江存儲) said on Thursday. A staff member for Shanghai Precision Measurement Semiconductor Technology gestures next to a giant mock-up chip during Semicon China, a trade fair for the semiconductor industry, in Shanghai, China June 29, this year. Photo: Reuters/Nicoco Chan“Our industry itself is cyclical, and each practitioner has his own way of dealing with the cycle. “For YMTC that I manage, we can no longer procure parts and components for equipment we had legally bought. If it is fair, please set up some fair rules to buy back the equipment,” he said.