Air force set to receive 66 F-16V jets over two years
Air force set to receive 66 F-16V jets over two yearsDEFENSE: The US originally approved the sale of the Block 70 jets in 2019, and since then the military has invested NT$140.2 billion into upgrading its existing Block 20 jetsBy Aaron Tu and William Hetherington / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe air force would receive 66 more F-16V Block 70 jets in the next two years, and would send 65 pilots to the US for specialized tactical training, a source said yesterday. All of the air force’s 140 F-16V Block 20 fighters in active service have already been upgraded with newer equipment, and the air force would acquire more advanced Block 70 jets beginning this year, the source said. A F-16V lands at the air base in Hualien, Taiwan, August 17, 2022. Photo: ReutersThe US originally approved the sale of the Block 70 jets in 2019, and since then Taiwan’s military has invested NT$140.2 billion (US$4.56 billion) into upgrading its existing Block 20 jets. Flight training — originally handled by the Air Force Academy — is now to be handled by a separate training unit in the air force headed by a major general, the source said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 01, 2024 08:18 UTC
EDITORIAL: China’s rhetoric will hurt its economy
EDITORIAL: China’s rhetoric will hurt its economyThis year is set to start positively in terms of stock market performance, after equities trading on the Taiwan Stock Exchange and the over-the-counter Taipei Exchange last week rose 1.9 percent and 0.5 percent respectively. Moreover, it showed that China plans to go on the offensive to stifle negative commentary about its economy and financial market. It is clear that Beijing regards negative commentary on the economy as a security concern. It explains why the Chinese Ministry of State Security in the following days issued documents for three consecutive days warning that commentary badmouthing the Chinese economy intended to play down the country’s positive prospects. This comes at a time when a growing range of topics are viewed by Chinese authorities as being sensitive to its economy.
Source:Taipei Times
January 01, 2024 03:39 UTC
Notes from Central Taiwan: William Lai: Uppity Taiwanese?
Notes from Central Taiwan: William Lai: Uppity Taiwanese? Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate William Lai on Thursday visits Lixing Fude Temple in New Taipei City’s Jhonghe District. From left: Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate William Lai, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) candidate Hou You-yi and Taiwan People’s Party candidate Ko Wen-je attend the second presidential debate on Dec. 26. The childhood home of Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate William Lai in New Taipei City’s Wanli District. This attack is one with its moves to surround Hou with far-right Mainlanders like his vice presidential candidate Jaw Shaw-kong (趙少康) and the proposed speaker of the legislature Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜).
Source:Taipei Times
December 31, 2023 21:39 UTC
N Korea vows to launch satellites, calls war inevitable
N Korea vows to launch satellites, calls war inevitableReuters, SEOULNorth Korea vowed to launch three new spy satellites, build military drones and boost its nuclear arsenal this year, as leader Kim Jong-un said that US policy is making war inevitable, state media reported yesterday. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un speaks during a meeting of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea in Pyongyang, in a photograph released yesterday. US President Joe Biden’s administration says it is open to talks, but it imposed new sanctions as North Korea pushed ahead with more missile tests banned under UN sanctions. The South Korean Ministry of National Defense condemned Pyongyang’s plans to press ahead with its nuclear ambitions. Kim said the return of such weapons had completely transformed South Korea into a “forward military base and nuclear arsenal” of the US.
Source:Taipei Times
December 31, 2023 21:39 UTC
Bangladesh’s ‘tiny houses’ tackle giant flood challenge
The Khudi Bari, or “tiny house” — resilient homes made on bamboo stilts rising out of the floodwaters that are also easy to move to safer locations when needed — offer hope to millions. A man works near a Khudi Bari, or “tiny house,” a mobile modular shelter, in Char Shildaha, Bangladesh, on Sept. 3. Architect Marina Tabassum, who designed the Khudi Bari, speaks during an interview at her office in Dhaka on Sept. 17. He said the architect has also used the Khudi Bari model to build a larger community center for Rohingya refugee women in the Bangladeshi camps. Tabassum is busy building more than a hundred Khudi Bari across Bangladesh to offer an example and inspiration for others.
Source:Taipei Times
December 30, 2023 17:36 UTC
What the candidates should be discussing
What the candidates should be discussingBy Chuang Sheng-rong 莊勝榮As the US presidential election is scheduled to take place in November next year, the Republican Party has begun its series of primaries. Three decades ago, candidates locked horns over issues like balancing the budget, the legalization of abortion, gun control and racism. The US presidential election is about choosing a candidate who can keep the nation in place as the world’s predominant superpower. In contrast, aside from the foreign policy issue concerning Taiwanese independence or Chinese unification, Taiwan’s Jan. 13 election campaign has seen the copious and all too usual mudslinging against candidates. Those who are familiar with history would know that when the Constitution was first promulgated, the territory included both China and Taiwan.
Source:Taipei Times
December 30, 2023 17:36 UTC
The KMT has crossed the line
The KMT has crossed the lineBy Tzou Jiing-wen 鄒景雯British newspaper the Observer said recently that of the more than 40 countries holding national elections next year, Taiwan’s presidential and legislative elections are the tensest. Biden’s message could not have been clearer, and he implied that some of Taiwan’s political parties and the Chinese government communicate. As Biden suggested, the political party supported by Beijing will certainly be affected by Beijing, and that political party will not be appreciated by the US. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) must be singled out. This time, the KMT has clearly crossed the line.
Source:Taipei Times
December 30, 2023 03:36 UTC
TPP starts online drive for highway sloganeering
TPP starts online drive for highway sloganeeringStaff writer, with CNATaiwan People’s Party (TPP) members recently launched an online promotional campaign calling on supporters to display slogans endorsing the TPP’s presidential ticket at every intersection along Provincial Highway No. As the Jan. 13 elections loom, TPP councilors from Taipei and New Taipei City, joined by party volunteers, issued an online rallying cry for supporters to showcase homemade slogans endorsing TPP Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲). TPP supporters are to gear up at 16 intersections along Provincial Highway No. Supporters of Taiwan People’s Party Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je rally in Kaohsiung’s Gangshan District on Saturday last week. Photo: CNATPP Taipei City Councilor Chen You-cheng (陳宥丞) on Monday said that more than 1,000 supporters have signed up for the one-hour rally.
Source:Taipei Times
December 29, 2023 17:08 UTC
More needed for minority voters
They need to consider how they could attract support from minority groups outside of their established voter bases. Hong Kong celebrity Chapman To (杜汶澤) is to vote in Taiwan for the first time after receiving his national identification card. Similarly, legacy media and online commentators rarely have a handle on the political preferences of minority groups. How to win support from new immigrants and indigenous people, whose voices are usually neglected, as well as first-time swing voters, often escapes the minds of campaign staffers. In next month’s elections, how to persuade minorities to vote for you instead of your opponent will be crucial.
Source:Taipei Times
December 29, 2023 03:39 UTC
‘One China’ is political propaganda
‘One China’ is political propagandaBy Hideki NagayamaBeijing’s “one China” principle is a legalized political propaganda attempt aimed to facilitate the annexation of Taiwan, by suggesting that the issue of Taiwan is a “domestic matter,” thereby preventing the US and Japan from interventing in the event of a cross-strait conflict. This begs the question: Is it true that Taiwan belongs to China as claimed by the “one China” principle? As a result, the interpretation that “Japan returned Taiwan and the Penghu islands to China in 1945” is the legal foundation for Beijing’s “one China” principle. Due to this, the “one China” principle does not have any legal basis and therefore the contention that “Taiwan is part of China” is entirely false. However, to obstruct Japan’s intervention in cross-strait issues, Beijing has consistently attempted to brainwash Japan with its “one China” principle.
Source:Taipei Times
December 27, 2023 03:39 UTC
Ministry expands Russian sanctions to stop technology being used for arms
Ministry expands Russian sanctions to stop technology being used for armsBy Ben Blanchard / Reuters, TAIPEIThe Ministry of Economic Affairs yesterday said that it has expanded a list of sanctioned goods for Russia and its ally Belarus in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to prevent Taiwanese high-tech goods from being used for military purposes. Taiwan has condemned Russia’s invasion and has already joined a Western-led sanctions effort, although it is largely symbolic as there is only minimal direct trade between the nation and Russia. Photo: Ann Wang, ReutersThe list includes equipment for making semiconductors, as well as certain chemicals and medicines, adding to previous announcements which already targeted the chip industry. The new sanctions are consistent with those already announced by the EU, the US and other nations, the ministry said in a statement. Export license applications would “in principle” not be approved, the ministry said.
Source:Taipei Times
December 27, 2023 00:32 UTC
Reject unequal service trade deal
Reject unequal service trade dealBy Jang Show-ling 鄭秀玲Publisher Rex How (郝明義), who was at the time a national policy adviser to the administration of then-president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英久), on June 20, 2013, wrote an open letter to Ma on the eve of the signing of the cross-strait service trade agreement. This explains why the cross-strait service trade agreement required Taiwan to liberalize far more items than China. If this unequal cross-strait service trade agreement had been passed, it would have had a direct impact on the livelihoods of the 5,835,000 employees of Taiwan’s approximately 1,148,000 service companies, which have an average of just 5.08 employees, and 85 percent of which are micro-enterprises with fewer than five employees. Furthermore, they must not simply accept all the terms of the unequal cross-strait service trade agreement signed by Ma’s administration 10 years ago. A decade ago, Ma repeatedly told the public that Taiwan’s economy would be doomed to lag far behind that of South Korea if it did not quickly sign the cross-strait service trade agreement.
Source:Taipei Times
December 26, 2023 21:42 UTC
China is two-faced on Myanmar
China is two-faced on MyanmarBy Antonio GraceffoChinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) is attempting to position himself as a mediator, promoting diplomatic ties with China as a credible alternative to aligning with the US. Instead, Thailand, not China, has provided a safe refuge for the 1.35 million people who have fled Myanmar. They just care about China,” Sai said, when asked how China addressed the refugee situation. However, he also acknowledged that Myanmar has no other option than to maintain close relations with China. Antonio Graceffo, a China economic analyst who holds a China MBA from Shanghai Jiaotong University, studies national defense at the American Military University in West Virginia.
Source:Taipei Times
December 21, 2023 21:42 UTC
2024 ELECTIONS: Curb special budgets: TPP
2024 ELECTIONS: Curb special budgets: TPPStaff writer, with CNAThe Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) on Wednesday announced proposals to curb the government’s use of special budgets and expand the allocation of tax revenues to local governments. TPP legislator at-large candidates Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) and Chang Chi-kai (張啟楷) made the proposals during a news conference at the campaign headquarters of TPP Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) in New Taipei City. Speaking first, Huang said that Taiwan’s current system gives the central government control of 82 percent of tax revenue, leaving local governments underfunded and unable to raise sufficient revenues on their own. Taiwan People’s Party Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je makes rice cakes at Nanmen Market in Taipei yesterday. Meanwhile, Chang said the TPP would also push to amend the Budget Act (預算法) to ensure the government does not use special budgets outside of the general budget as a “blank authorization” for unrestrained spending.
Source:Taipei Times
December 21, 2023 21:40 UTC
EDITORIAL: Election meddling a key battleground
EDITORIAL: Election meddling a key battlegroundThe Chinese government is using TikTok and other social media platforms to sow discontent among Taiwanese over policy issues, and to sway young voters toward pro-China candidates, an official said on Sunday. In the US, several states have banned government agencies, and their employees and contractors, from using TikTok on government-issued devices. However, in the US there is also no legal basis for banning civilians from using TikTok or any other platform on their personal devices. With the presidential and legislative elections just around the corner, the government must ensure it is on top of efforts to combat Chinese disinformation and influence campaigns. Pro-China forces in Taiwan that collaborate on Chinese efforts will add to the challenge, but authorities must remain vigilant, and work to counter them.
Source:Taipei Times
December 21, 2023 03:44 UTC