■ Diplomacy
Panama delays Beijing trip
China said yesterday that Panamanian First Vice President Arturo Vallarino had postponed a planned visit to Beijing. His trip had raised concerns that Taipei was about to lose another diplomatic ally. "Vallarino has decided to postpone his visit to China until next year because of personal reasons," a Chinese foreign ministry official said.
Vallarino had been scheduled to visit China from tomorrow through Sept. 7 at the invitation of a thinktank affiliated with the Chinese government. The visit, which would have become Vallarino's second in four years, had been widely interpreted as a move designed to pave the way for Panama-China relations. Beijing said last week that it was keen to set up diplomatic relations with the Central American country.
■ Technology
University inks pact
US-based Microseal LLC and the I-Shou University signed a memorandum yesterday to jointly develop micro and nano technologies for security and anti-counterfeiting use. Li Yien-chie (李彥杰), director of the university's research center, said the school's work with Microseal will help increase the commercial applications of micro and nano technologies. Li said Microseal's work can give every product a unique and nearly invisible "fingerprint" that cannot be counterfeited, therefore the technology can be applied to products ranging from ID cards, passports and visas to bank notes, jewelry and pharmaceuticals. University president Fu Shen-li said that in addition to offering equipment and experts in engineering, administration and legal services for the program with Microseal, the school will also set up an exclusive research and development center to develop applications for Microseal's products.
■ Health
Hospital offers interpreters
Jen-Ai Hospital in Tali City, Taichung County, has set up an International Patient Center to accommodate the growing medical needs of the foreign community in Taichung. The center has recruited a group of volunteers to provide free interpreter services in more than a dozen languages, ranging from English, French and Thai to Tagalog, Burmese and Hakka. The volunteers will be available during regular hospital hours while the center also plans to arrange three-way telephone interpretation via conference calls. The hospital, however, is recommending people call at least three days in advance to make sure the desired interpretation service is available.
■ Trade
Envoy speaks for farmers
Taiwan's permanent representative to the WTO, Yen Ching-chang (顏慶章), said in Geneva yesterday that Taiwan is of the position that the needs of new members should be taken into account in the agricultural negotiations at the upcoming Fifth Ministerial Conference of the WTO. Yen said Taiwan is very concerned about the rights of new members in the agricultural negotiations, which will be high on the agenda at the September meeting. The conference is set for Sept. 10-14 in Cancun, Mexico. As the outcome of the agricultural negotiations is expected to have a significant impact on Taiwan's economy, Yen said, the government has sought to safeguard the rights and interests of Taiwan's farm population. Yen said that it is impossible to apply a unified solution to all members, adding that the rules should be more flexible.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
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