■ DIPLOMACY
Huang's letter published
A Danish newspaper has published Minister of Foreign Affairs James Huang's (黃志芳) letter calling for the Scandinavian country to support the nation's application for UN membership under the name of Taiwan. Huang said in his letter published on Saturday in the Jyllands-Posten that since 1993, Taiwan, under its official title the "Republic of China," has unsuccessfully filed applications for UN representation. The country has decided to adopt a new strategy this year, applying under the name "Taiwan," on the grounds that up to 77 percent of the people of Taiwan support such a bid, Huang said. He described Taiwan as a "model democracy of multi-party politics" that needs more support from the international community.
■ POLITICS
Talk is cheap, says Hsieh
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) yesterday said that farmers affected by the recent spate of flooding and bad weather would benefit from politicians talking less and doing more to help them solve their woes. Hsieh made the remarks while accompanying Kaohsiung County Commissioner Yang Chiu-hsing (楊秋興) on a visit to papaya farms hit by last week's bad weather in Kaohsiung's Meinung Township (美濃). Asked for his views on the DPP's draft "normal country" resolution, Hsieh said that he believed DPP Chairman Yu Shyi-kun's intentions were good and he would support the resolution if Yu insisted on carrying it out.
■ POLITICS
Lu not buying a villa
Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) has no plans to buy a luxurious apartment in Taoyuan County, officials from the Department of Public Affairs said yesterday. The officials were responding to an Era cable TV news report on Sunday that said Lu recently visited the construction site of an upmarket residential complex, called "Gallery & Palace by the Riverside," in Nankan (南崁), Taoyuan, and that she might purchase one of the units costing NT$90 million (US$2.7 million). The officials said that Lu made the visit in the company of Overseas Compatriot Affairs Commission officials, who want to encourage overseas Taiwanese to settle back home. The commission has been encouraging overseas Taiwanese to purchase homes in the country to prepare for their eventual settlement, the official said, adding that the vice president has absolutely no plans to buy a new apartment in Taoyuan.
■ ECONOMY
Expert advises Kaohsiung
A financial expert yesterday advised the Kaohsiung administration to encourage certain flagship companies to take the lead in attracting more technology-intensive downstream industries to the city to produce a cluster effect. Hsieh Chin-ho (謝金河), executive director of the Taipei-based Wealth publishing group, made the comments in a meeting at city hall with Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊). Hsieh suggested that Kaohsiung should first "find its own strengths," adding that both the city's climate and its geographical position make it an ideal place for developing wind power and solar energy industries. He urged the government to encourage more established companies, such as China Steel Corp, to take the lead in attracting more technology-intensive industries, such as machine tool, stainless steel and precision machinery manufacturing, to create more economic benefits in the city.
■ ENTERTAINMENT
Venice film label protested
The government will protest local filmmakers being labeled as from "Taiwan, China" at the Venice Film Festival, Executive Yuan Secretary-General Chen Chin-jun (陳景峻) said yesterday. Chen said that the Government Information Office had told diplomats in Italy to ask organizers to correct the titles being used for Ang Lee's (李安) Lust, Caution (色,戒), Lee Kang-sheng's (李康生) Help Me Eros (幫幫我愛神), Lin Jing-jie's (林靖杰) The Most Distant Course (最遙遠的距離) and Alexi Tan's (陳奕利) Blood Brothers (天堂口). Chen cited the example of New York Yankees pitcher Wang Chien-ming (王建民), who is labeled as a "Chinese" player on official Chinese Web sites, as another example of Beijing's attempts to claim Taiwanese achievements as its own. Festival organizers changed their Web site last month after a protest from Lee's office, which had been
upset that his country of origin had been listed as "China-
US" when his film was first entered. The festival opens tomorrow.
■ POLITICS
KMT official denies rumors
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Secretary-General Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) said yesterday that reports he was trying to undermine Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) were a "misunderstanding," and that he wanted just wanted to be a legislator. "I won't compete on the same stage as Wang," he said. Several KMT politicians have signed a petition demanding that KMT Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung (吳伯雄) replace Wu and Deputy Secretary-General Liao Feng-de (廖風德) over allegations that they were trying to prevent him from being re-elected speaker. Wu said that he had not said or done anything improper, and that he hoped the entire episode could be put to rest.
‘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
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck off Tainan at 11:47am today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 32.3km northeast of Tainan City Hall at a depth of 7.3km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Tainan and Chiayi County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Chiayi City and County, and Yunlin County, while it was measured as 2 in Kaohsiung, Nantou County, Changhua County, Taitung County and offshore Penghu County, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
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