■ DIPLOMACY
New diplomats announced
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs last night announced four new ambassadorial appointments for positions in Africa, Central America and the Caribbean. Current ambassador to South African Richard Shih (石瑞琦) will now head the embassy in Gambia. Chen Chung (陳忠), the current representative to New Zealand, will be the new ambassador to Sao Tome and Principe. Leo Lee (李澄然) is expected to leave his post as the head of the ministry's Department of North American Affairs to become ambassador to St. Vincent and the Grenadines. The new ambassador to Haiti will be Hsu Mien-sheng (徐勉生), who has held diplomatic posts in France, Senegal, and Angola. A ministry official said the four men were career diplomats who were ideal candidates to safeguard Taiwan's existing allies in the face of relentless pressure from China.
■ TRANSPORTATION
High-speed rail serves 20m
The accumulated passenger volume of the high-speed railway system reached the 20-million mark on Friday, a little more than one year after the service was launched, Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp said yesterday. The system's passenger volume totaled 2,095,210 last month, setting a record single-month high, the company said in a statement. The company said passenger traffic has been increasing since trial operations began on Jan. 5 last year, topping the 5 million mark on May 28, the 10 million mark on Sept. 18 and the 15 million mark on Dec. 21. Carbon dioxide released by a high-speed train averages only 0.0267kg per passenger-kilometer, about one-quarter of the average 0.1kg released per passenger-kilometer by a small passenger car, it said.
CAUTION: Based on intelligence from the nation’s security agencies, MOFA has cautioned Taiwanese travelers about heightened safety risks in China-friendly countries The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday urged Taiwanese to be aware of their safety when traveling abroad, especially in countries that are friendly to China. China in June last year issued 22 guidelines that allow its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death so-called “diehard” Taiwanese independence activists, even though Chinese courts have no jurisdiction in Taiwan. Late last month, a senior Chinese official gave closed-door instructions to state security units to implement the guidelines in countries friendly to China, a government memo and a senior Taiwan security official said, based on information gathered by Taiwan’s intelligence agency. The
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said yesterday that it is looking to hire 8,000 people this year, at a time when the tech giant is expanding production capacity to maintain its lead over competitors. To attract talent, TSMC would launch a large-scale recruitment campaign on campuses across Taiwan, where a newly recruited engineer with a master’s degree could expect to receive an average salary of NT$2.2 million (US$60,912), which is much higher than the 2023 national average of NT$709,000 for those in the same category, according to government statistics. TSMC, which accounted for more than 60 percent
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
Tung Tzu-hsien (童子賢), a Taiwanese businessman and deputy convener of the nation’s National Climate Change Committee, said yesterday that “electrical power is national power” and nuclear energy is “very important to Taiwan.” Tung made the remarks, suggesting that his views do not align with the country’s current official policy of phasing out nuclear energy, at a forum organized by the Taiwan People’s Party titled “Challenges and Prospects of Taiwan’s AI Industry and Energy Policy.” “Taiwan is currently pursuing industries with high added- value and is developing vigorously, and this all requires electricity,” said the chairman
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