Taiwan first casualty if UN falters
Taiwan first casualty if UN faltersBy Bonnie Yushih Liao 廖雨詩When tensions flare between US President Donald Trump and the UN, reactions in Taiwan are often marked by frustration, even indifference. If a world in which the UN no longer meaningfully functions becomes normal, Taiwan would not be insulated from the fallout. For Taiwan, this would not be an exception — it would be a precedent. Were Taiwan to be absorbed under conditions of international paralysis, the ripple effects would be immediate. Taiwan would not be the only victim of such a transformation, but it would be among the first, the clearest and the most consequential.
Source:Taipei Times
February 04, 2026 18:45 UTC
Zhang Youxia: veteran princeling caught in China’s military purge
Zhang Youxia: veteran princeling caught in China’s military purgeZhang is just the latest in a slew of top military officials suspected of ‘serious violations of discipline’AFP, BEIJINGChina’s announcement its top general was under investigation stunned defense watchers, hollowing out the country’s top military body and confirming President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) far-reaching power. Zhang Youxia (張又俠), a vice chairman of the powerful Central Military Commission (CMC), is targeted in a probe for serious violations of the law — a common euphemism for corruption. China’s vice chairman of the CPC Central Military Commission and vice chairman of the Central Military Commission of the People’s Republic of China Zhang Youxia, center, in April 2024 arrives for a group photo before the opening ceremony of the 19th Western Pacific Naval Symposium in Qingdao, China’s Shandong province. In 2017, Zhang was promoted to one of the CMC’s vice chairman positions, also joining the Communist Party’s elite body, the Politburo. An earlier editorial, published a day after Beijing announced the probes, said their actions “seriously undermined and violated the system of responsibility of the CMC chairman,” Xi.
Source:Taipei Times
February 04, 2026 17:14 UTC
Notes from Central Taiwan: Taiwan’s pirate past
They were the first of many organized criminals who exploited the stateless international status of the island, a recurrent theme in Taiwan history. Photo: Wang Shu-hsiu, Taipei Times“From bases on Taiwan, Lin’s fleets sallied forth with the monsoons each year to plunder shipping across the entire South China Sea,” Antony writes. Tsai Chien (蔡牽), a pirate based in southern Fujian, gradually began to dominate the seas between the China coast and Taiwan between 1800 and 1804. In 1805 and 1806 he attacked Taiwan, intending to take over the island and use it as a base. For pirates, Taiwan was not just a base, but also a market.
Source:Taipei Times
February 04, 2026 17:14 UTC
Book review: Engineering different visions of Taiwan
It was hard to imagine much had been left uncovered by this book (reviewed in the Taipei Times, Feb. 27, 2025, and listed as a notable 2025 book about Taiwan in the Taipei Times, Jan. 2, 2026). Yet, this short monograph — magnanimously recommended to me by Tinn for taking “a different approach” — reimagines the story of Taiwan’s engineers through a lens that is both novel and instructive. Indeed, Lin’s book (reviewed in the Taipei Times, Aug. 14, 2025) is an excellent companion piece to Engineers and the Two Taiwans. Both highlight institutionalized inequality in career opportunities between “local” Taiwanese, or “islanders,” and “mainlanders,” or those who arrived from China after World War II. While berating local Taiwanese talent as underqualified and morally lacking, the KMT administration ironically perpetuated the divide with its own two-tier system.
Source:Taipei Times
February 04, 2026 17:14 UTC
Donovan’s Deep Dives : Macro political trends entering this election year in Taiwan
Donovan’s Deep Dives : Macro political trends entering this election year in TaiwanBy Courtney Donovan Smith 石東文 / Staff ColumnistWhat are the factors to watch going forward this election year? In 2014, following the Sunflower movement, the political ground shifted, with the center of gravity moving closer to the pro-Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), pan-green camp. The KMT has favorables at 34.4 percent and unfavorables at 49.9 percent, while the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) sits at 30.8 percent and 51.8 percent, respectively. For a youth-led movement to arise, they are going to have to punch far above their weight and inspire other generations to back them, at which point would it still be a youth-led movement? Donovan’s Deep Dives is a regular column by Courtney Donovan Smith (石東文) who writes in-depth analysis on everything about Taiwan’s political scene and geopolitics.
Source:Taipei Times
February 04, 2026 17:14 UTC
CCP-KMT text unacceptable, minister says
CCP-KMT text unacceptable, minister says‘HOSTILITY’: China’s ‘one country, two systems’ formula for Taiwan is designed to eliminate the ROC, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said yesterdayBy Shih Hsiao-kuang, Chen Fu-yu and Jake Chung / Staff reporters, with staff writerMainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) yesterday said the government will not accept the “15 shared recommendations” by the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) and the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) think tanks. The text is full of condemnation of the government for “obstructing” cross-strait exchanges and hindering Chinese tourists, which completely reversed the cause and effect, he said. Chinese Nationalist Party Vice Chairman Hsiao Hsu-tsen, left, shakes hand with Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference Chairman Wang Huning in Beijing yesterday. The “15 shared recommendations” are filled with condemnations of the current administration for obstructing cross-strait exchanges and blocking mainland tourists, he said. The KMT yesterday said that the MAC is shirking its duties of liaising between Taiwan and China, standing as the true blocking stone of cross-strait interaction and a “troublemaker” sabotaging cross-strait peace.
Source:Taipei Times
February 04, 2026 17:14 UTC
HK writer celebrates Taiwan links
HK writer celebrates Taiwan linksBy Chao Yen-hsiang / CNA, with staff writerWhen mystery writer Mou Yip (冒業) takes the stage at the Taipei International Book Exhibition (TiBE) on Saturday, it would be more than just a book talk to the 34-year-old Hong Konger. Mou Yip, front right, poses with attendees at a seminar in Taipei on Sept. 9, 2023. Photo courtesy of Mou Yip, via CNAWhen it comes to mysteries, Hong Kong and Taiwan are intertwined, said Mou Yip, a software engineer by trade. “In this sense, mystery novels in Taiwan and Hong Kong essentially thrive hand in hand,” Mou Yip said. The imposition of Hong Kong’s National Security Law in 2020 triggered a wave of migration to Taiwan.
Source:Taipei Times
February 04, 2026 17:14 UTC
AIT urges defense resolve after Huang’s comments
An AIT spokesperson made the remark in response to media inquiries about Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Huang Kuo-chang’s (黃國昌) comments in an interview with the United Daily News on Tuesday. Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei TimesThe opposition has repeatedly blocked the Executive Yuan’s eight-year special defense budget. The US Department of State has said multiple times that it welcomes the NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.59 billion) special defense budget, the AIT said yesterday. Cutting their defense budget undermines investments in essential weapons systems as China’s threats are intensifying. The opposition’s claims that the defense budget is opaque have no basis, he said.
Source:Taipei Times
February 04, 2026 17:14 UTC
Miaoli man fatally shot by police after stabbing officer
Miaoli man fatally shot by police after stabbing officerStaff writer, with CNAA 40-year-old man who threatened people with a knife at a traditional market in Miaoli yesterday morning was fatally shot by police after stabbing an officer in the head, local authorities said. Police investigate the scene of a stabbing incident yesterday at Nan Miao Market in Miaoli City. When Chung refused, an officer sprayed him with pepper spray, causing him to fly into a rage and run erratically around the market, he said. As bystanders came forward to separate the two, the other officer, surnamed Lee (李), fired two shots at Chung and restrained him on the ground. Miaoli Hospital in a statement said that Chu — the police officer — sustained stab wounds on his forehead and the top of his head.
Source:Taipei Times
February 04, 2026 17:14 UTC
TPP’s Li not fit to be legislator: DPP and groups
TPP’s Li not fit to be legislator: DPP and groupsBy Lee Wen-hsin, Chen Chih-cheng and Jason Pan / Staff reportersCivic groups and members of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday urged the removal of Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Legislator-at-large Li Zhenxiu (李貞秀) from the legislature, as she holds Chinese nationality. Taiwan Society North called Li a serious threat to Taiwan’s constitutional system and urged the government to bar Li from serving as a legislator. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator-at-large Li Zhenxiu speaks at a news conference in Taipei yesterday. Photo: CNADPP Legislator Puma Shen (沈伯洋) said he had told Li in 2024 that she must renounce her Chinese nationality, otherwise she would not be able to become a legislator. Li said she had submitted her application form to the Ministry of the Interior as proof of taking necessary steps to renounce her Chinese citizenship.
Source:Taipei Times
February 04, 2026 17:14 UTC
Taiwan’s Starlux Airlines to launch flights to Prague on Aug. 1
Taiwan’s Starlux Airlines to launch flights to Prague on Aug. 1Staff Writer, with CNAStarlux Airlines, the newest international carrier in Taiwan, will launch direct flights on Aug. 1 between Taipei and Prague, its first destination in Europe, the Prague Airport said Wednesday. In a statement posted on its website, the airport said Starlux Airlines will initially provide three round-trip flights between the two cities every week. Starlux Airlines’ Airbus A350-1000 aircraft takes off from Toulouse in an undated photo. Photo courtesy of Starlux AirlinesStarlux Airlines, which had said earlier that it would launch direct flights to Europe for the first time this year with two destinations, confirmed with CNA plans to launch the direct flights to Prague. China Airlines is the first Taiwanese international carrier to start direct flight services to Prague in 2023.
Source:Taipei Times
February 04, 2026 17:14 UTC
Taiwan makes US$3m donation to Caribbean ally
Taiwan makes US$3m donation to Caribbean allyStaff writer, with CNAThe government on Tuesday donated US$3 million to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) to support its social relief programs, Taiwan’s embassy to the Caribbean ally said yesterday. The donation was made by Ambassador to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Fiona Fan (范惠君) to SVG Prime Minister Godwin Friday during a ceremony, the Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan) in SVG said in a social media post. Friday expressed his gratitude on behalf of his government and people for Taiwan’s support, saying that the grant represents a vital “investment in people” of the Caribbean nation. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) Prime Minister Godwin Friday, left, and Ambassador to SVG Fiona Fan shake hands at a ceremony in SVG on Tuesday. Since taking office, Friday has said that Saint Vincent and the Grenadines will maintain diplomatic relations with Taiwan, which were established in 1981.
Source:Taipei Times
February 04, 2026 17:14 UTC
Cycling for tibet
Final batch of M1A2T tanks to be delivered soon, source saysThe manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Source:Taipei Times
February 04, 2026 17:14 UTC
Tigerair Taiwan signs deal to buy four A321neos
Tigerair Taiwan signs deal to buy four A321neosStaff Writer, with CNATigerair Taiwan, the only Taiwanese low-cost carrier, has signed an agreement with Airbus to purchase four A321neos, the European plane maker said Wednesday. In a statement, Airbus said the purchase agreement marked the first time the Taiwanese carrier has ordered A321neo aircraft to expand its fleet. Tigerair Taiwan currently operates an all-Airbus fleet of 17 aircraft, comprising nine A320ceos and eight A320neos. Tigerair Taiwan Chairwoman Huang Shih-hui, front left, shakes hands with Airbus Senior Vice President of Sales Benoit de Saint-Exupery to ink a deal to purchase more A321neos. Tigerair Taiwan on Wednesday also announced it will launch a new Taichung-Okinawa route on March 30, with two flights per week in the initial phase.
Source:Taipei Times
February 04, 2026 17:14 UTC
Strike hits New Zealand-bound holiday travelers
Strike hits New Zealand-bound holiday travelersBy Shelley Shan / Staff reporterTravel agencies in Taiwan are working to secure alternative flights for travelers bound for New Zealand for the Lunar New Year holiday, as Air New Zealand workers are set to strike next week. Travelers wait for boarding at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Dec. 1 last year. Photo: Chen Yi-kuan, Taipei TimesThe announcement came as people are about to celebrate the nine-day Lunar New Year holiday, which begins on Saturday next week. Passengers whose travel plans were disrupted by the strike could rebook alternative flights within seven days before or after their original departure dates without paying processing fees or fare differences, the airline said. Whether the strike would cause further disruptions to air travel to New Zealand remains to be seen, he said.
Source:Taipei Times
February 04, 2026 17:14 UTC