Claiming responsibility for keeping the nation informed on domestic and foreign threats to the country, President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) government will deliver an unprecedented formal report on national security to the public this summer.
The National Security Report, to be presented by the president, will encompass five areas, including finance and the economy, defense, cross-strait affairs, diplomatic matters and land conservation, National Security Council Secretary-General Chiou I-jen (邱義仁) said yesterday, during a press conference held after a meeting of national security officials.
Yesterday's meeting, presided over by the president at the Presidential Office, focused primarily on topics relating to finance and the economy.
"The purpose of today's meeting is to discuss the contents of the National Security Report draft to be prepared by the National Security Council," Chen said during the meeting.
"There will be many more of this kind [of meeting] taking place in the near future to deliberate on all of these issues, and at an appropriate time I will formally convene a national-security meeting and present the National Security Report [to the public]," Chen said. "The government has the obligation to periodically or at times of importance present a National Security Report to the public."
Chen said the topics would include the economy, finance, energy, disease, population, information resources as well as issues of ethnicity and identification, which are "gradually becoming new security challenges to us."
"If we neglect unconventional threats while addressing national-security issues, they could result in deteriorating social order, worsening living standards and political and economic environments, or worse, impact on the country's long-term prosperity, its survival and its international competitiveness," Chen said.
Chiu said that the report, which the president plans to deliver this summer, will focus on feasible guidelines for policy over the next two to four years.
"The report aims to serve as a point of reference, but I will not touch upon the details on how policies should be mapped out," Chiu said. "[The report] will not infringe upon the authority of the Executive Yuan."
The National Security Report will not be written from a more conventional standpoint such as military threats, but will instead have a more comprehensive security perspective, Chiu said.
Chiu said the National Security Council would convene five meetings before the report is published.
"According to what is stated in the Constitution, the president will then convene a national-security meeting and deliver the National Security Report," Chiu said.
He added that it would be up to the president to decide how frequently the report is presented.
Attending the meeting yesterday were Vice President Annette Lu (
SEA WARNING LIKELY: The storm, named Gaemi, could become a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, with the Taipei City Government preparing for flooding A tropical depression east of the Philippines developed into a tropical storm named Gaemi at 2pm yesterday, and was moving toward eastern Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Gaemi could begin to affect Taiwan proper on Tuesday, lasting until Friday, and could develop into a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, it said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued as early as Tuesday morning, it added. Gaemi, the third tropical storm in the Pacific Ocean this typhoon season, is projected to begin moving northwest today, and be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday, the agency said. Today, there would likely
CHIPS AND DEFENSE: Trump said the US had lost its chip business and Taipei should pay it for defense, and added that ‘we’re no different than an insurance company’ Taiwan-US relations are solid, and both sides are in agreement that peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region are everyone’s concern, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday following comments by former US president Donald Trump that Taiwan “should pay” for US defense. Taiwan is thankful to the US for supporting Taiwan’s bid to participate in international organizations, Cho told a news conference in Taipei. “I know the people very well, respect them greatly. They did take about 100 percent of our chip business,” Trump told Bloomberg on June 25 in an interview that was published on Tuesday. “I think
SHOW OF SUPPORT: Taiwan has been one of the largest buyers of US defense equipment, supporting American businesses and jobs, US lawmakers said Taiwan has been paying for its own defense, a US Department of State official said on Wednesday, adding that purchases of military equipment are important to the US economy and for ensuring regional security. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller was asked at a news conference about comments by former US president Donald Trump, the Republican nominee in November’s US presidential election, who said during an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek that Taiwan should pay Washington for its defense needs. “The purchases that they [Taiwan] have made not only are important, we believe, to regional security, but are important to the United States economy,”
Hsu Wen-erh (許汶而) on Friday became the first Taiwanese to swim solo across the English Channel, saying she was very happy to bring Taiwan to the world. Hsu completed the challenge in 12 hours, 17 minutes and eight seconds, after swimming across the Strait of Gibraltar in October last year. She said she had planned to swim the English Channel in August next year, but seized the opportunity when a vacancy became available on the waiting list. She went to the UK in May to train for a test that involves swimming for six hours at 16°C, which people who want to swim