Thu, Oct 30, 2025
China yesterday said that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump would have “in depth” talks on “major issues” today.Trump has said he expected their first face-to-face meeting of his second term to result in the US lowering tariffs imposed on China in relation to fentanyl.
Israel yesterday said that it had carried out strikes on dozens of Hamas targets following the death of a soldier, with Gaza experiencing its deadliest night of bombing since a US-brokered truce went into effect earlier this month.The Israeli military said that it had targeted 30 senior militants.Is
US chipmaker Nvidia Corp has confirmed its Taiwan headquarters would be built on Beitou Shilin Technology Park’s (北投士林科技園區) T17 and T18 plots in Taipei, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) told a meeting of the Taipei City Council yesterday, adding that the city government would fast-track administrati
Boosting national defense is not a provocation, but to deter an invasion, and safeguard Taiwan’s democracy and freedom, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday.“Investing in our armed forces is investing in peace,” Lai said at a ceremony to promote military officers at the Presidential Office in
GLOBAL PROJECT: Underseas cables ‘are the nervous system of democratic connectivity,’ which is under stress, Member of the European Parliament Rihards Kols said The government yesterday launched an initiative to promote global cooperation on improved security of undersea cables, following reported disruptions of such cables near Taiwan and around the world.The Management Initiative on International Undersea Cables aims to “bring together stakeholders, align
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday lavished US President Donald Trump with praise and vows of a “golden age” of ties on his visit to Tokyo, before inking a deal with Washington aimed at securing critical minerals.Takaichi — Japan’s first female prime minister — pulled out all the stops
‘REUNIFICATION’: China aims to ‘Hong Kong-ify’ and ‘Macau-ify’ Taiwan to belittle its international standing and erode its sovereignty, a top security official said China’s “patriots” model is what Beijing used in Hong Kong and Macau, and has no market in Taiwan, National Security Bureau (NSB) Director-General Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) said yesterday, in response to stronger rhetoric from Beijing ahead of a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese Presid
The National Security Bureau (NSB) yesterday said that it has identified at least eight methods by which Chinese vessels intrude into restricted waters near Kinmen County, adding that such activities have made monitoring the area more difficult.Bureau Director-General Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) made the re
NEW FRONTIER: Aside from leveraging its chip expertise, Taiwan should cultivate local talent and boost partnerships with developed countries Taiwan has an “absolute advantage” in semiconductors that it should leverage to build its own quantum computing ecosystem and cultivate local talent, an Academia Sinica fellow said on Tuesday.Developing a homegrown quantum computer would stimulate advances in related hardware and control software, s
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday accused the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) of complicity in Beijing’s campaign to subvert the nation, a day after incoming KMT vice chairman Hsiao Hsu-tsen (蕭旭岑) met with high-ranking communist officials in Tianjin, China.Hsiao, who also heads the Ma
The hospitality sector and ports could soon apply to hire migrant workers, provided they increase the monthly salary of their lowest-paid domestic workers by NT$2,000 (US$65.30) for every foreign worker hired, according to new migrant worker policies to be finalized at a Cabinet meeting today.The 50
POTENTIAL FRAUD: Documents for the disposal of dead pigs were tampered with, the Taichung deputy mayor said, adding that evidence was forwarded to prosecutors The gene sequencing results of Taiwan’s first cases of African swine fever (ASF), which could help determine the virus’ source, would be released tomorrow at the earliest, the Ministry of Agriculture said yesterday.The cases were publicly confirmed on Wednesday last week following an outbreak at a p
SOME BIG REDUCTIONS: Railway construction projects would be affected by the amendments, with TRC getting NT$2.95 billion less for train maintenance Subsidies allocated to the six special municipalities for the construction of MRT systems would be reduced by NT$30.85 billion (US$1.01 billion) next year following the passage of amendments earlier this year, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday.The amendments to the Act
The Taoyuan District Prosecutors’ Office yesterday indicted 12 people, including an airport security officer, on suspicion of smuggling more than 9,000 heated tobacco products into Taiwan.A woman surnamed Yang (楊), 40, along with her mother and nine other suspected, allegedly bribed Aviation Police
The number of centenarians in Taiwan hit a record 5,749 as of Aug. 29, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said Wednesday as the nation celebrated the Double Ninth Festival.The festival, also known as the Chongyang Festival or Senior Citizens’ Day, falls on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month and
GROWTH FORECAST: Despite global economic uncertainty and geopolitical risks, the company expects next year to be another year of growth on 22-nanometer demand Contract chipmaker United Microelectronics Corp (UMC, 聯電) yesterday reported a sequential growth of 68 percent in net profit for last quarter and said its wafer shipments this year would grow 13 percent year-on-year.UMC said net profit last quarter surged about 68 percent to NT$14.98 billion (US$489
SUSTAINED MOMENTUM: The company expects AI demand to persist and aims for AI-related business to account for more than 20 percent of total revenue this year Lite-On Technology Corp (光寶科技) expects fourth-quarter revenue to grow sequentially and annually on higher shipments of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) power supply products, company president Anson Chiu (邱森彬) said yesterday.The electronic components maker expects the growth momentum to persist
Taiwan’s housing market cooled sharply this year, with property transfers in the first nine months plunging 28.1 percent to 194,976 units — the lowest level for the period since 2017, data released yesterday by the Ministry of the Interior showed.The volume ranks as the third-lowest on record, with
Ahead of US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) meeting today on the sidelines of the APEC summit in South Korea, an op-ed published in Time magazine last week maliciously called President William Lai (賴清德) a “reckless leader,” stirring skepticism in Taiwan about the US a
On Sunday, Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun reported that the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare is looking to expand the bracket of those aged 70 or older who pay 30 percent of their medical fees out-of-pocket to fully encompass anyone whose income is on par with the working generation. The plan
China’s strange and inconsistent behavior on the international stage often stems from the externalization of internal issues. As the fourth plenary session of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) 20th congress approached and tensions built, Beijing suddenly tore up the trade framework it had agreed u
REACTION: Less than 24 hours after a 18-inning Game 3 loss, the Blue Jays’ win ensured that the best-of-seven series is to head back to Toronto for Game 6 tomorrow Vladimir Guerrero Jr on Tuesday blasted a two-run home run as the Toronto Blue Jays bounced back to defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 and tie the MLB World Series at two games apiece. Less than 24 hours after a shattering 18-inning Game 3 loss, the Blue Jays climbed off the canvas to breathe new li
Reigning NBA champion the Oklahoma City Thunder, fueled by 31 points from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on Tuesday rallied to beat the Sacramento Kings 107-101 to improve to 5-0 in the young season. The Philadelphia 76ers also remained unbeaten, erasing a double-digit deficit to improve to 4-0 with a thri
Britain’s Cameron Norrie on Tuesday stunned world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 to reach the third round of the Paris Masters and end the Spaniard’s 17-match winning streak at ATP Masters 1000 level. Fresh from claiming his eighth title of the season in Tokyo, six-time Grand Slam champion Alcar
US President Donald Trump’s granddaughter, Kai Trump, is poised to make her LPGA Tour debut after receiving a sponsor invitation on Tuesday to the Nov. 13 to 16 tournament at Pelican Golf Club in Florida. “My dream has been to compete with the best in the world on the LPGA Tour,” Kai Trump said in a
‘NO WORKABLE SOLUTION’: An official said Pakistan engaged in the spirit of peace, but Kabul continued its ‘unabated support to terrorists opposed to Pakistan’ Pakistan yesterday said that negotiations for a lasting truce with Afghanistan had “failed to bring about a workable solution,” warning that it would take steps to protect its people.Pakistan and Afghanistan have been holding negotiations in Istanbul, Turkey, aimed at securing peace after the South
OUSTED PM: ‘Free and fair elections require genuine competition, the ability of all parties to campaign and the electorate’s right to choose,’ Sheikh Hasina said Bangladesh’s fugitive former prime minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday warned that holding elections without her party — the first since her overthrow — was “sowing the seeds” of further division in her country.In written responses to Agence France-Presse, her first interview since being ousted, Hasina
Monkeys being transported on a Mississippi highway escaped captivity on Tuesday after the truck carrying them overturned, according to law enforcement.All but one of the escaped monkeys were killed, the Jasper County Sheriff’s Department said in a post on Facebook, warning that the monkeys were “agg
At a public meeting on Monday to discuss reconstruction efforts for Guangfu Township (光復) in Hualien County, the town recently struck by the barrier lake overflow and flood that resulted in 19 deaths, descended into chaos after Hualien County Council Speaker and Guangfu resident Chang Chun (張峻) — pr
Is there an equilibrium in Taiwan politics, or what Oxford defines as “A state in which opposing forces or influences are balanced”? If there is, what is it, and what could change it?Pattern recognition is a crucial aspect of political analysis. Correctly spotting and identifying changing or emergin
Despite plummeting relations between Beijing and Washington, Shanghai resident Huang is determined that her daughter will complete her costly education in the US.Even as the two sides have spent much of this year locked in a blistering trade row, US schools and universities remain hugely popular wit
A: So you’re reading Jin Yong’s martial arts novel again?B: Yup, Jin’s novels are so fascinating, especially the trilogy: “Legends of the Condor Heroes,” “Return of the Condor Heroes,” and “Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber.”A: The late novelist published his first story in 1955, which means this yea
Have you ever seen a circular intersection where cars continuously flow in one direction around a central island? That is a “roundabout,” a well-known alternative to traditional intersections. Drivers enter and exit at different points without relying on traffic lights. Their primary purpose is to i
Pigs that are resistant to a deadly viral disease have been created by scientists at Edinburgh’s Roslin Institute.The gene-edited animals remained healthy when exposed to classical swine fever (CSF), a highly contagious and often fatal disease. The virus was eradicated in the UK in 1966, but there h
Two moves show Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) is gunning for Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) party chair and the 2028 presidential election. Technically, these are not yet “officially” official, but by the rules of Taiwan politics, she is now on the dance floor. Earlier this month Lu confirmed in an interview in Japan’s Nikkei that she was considering running for KMT chair. This is not new news, but according to reports from her camp she previously was still considering the case for and against running. By choosing a respected, international news outlet, she declared it to the world. While the outside world likely paid little attention, domestically the message was unmistakable: She is moving on to a larger stage. Part of the dance is to leave options open before formally committing, and with the chair race due in late September, she has time. If something goes wrong in the meantime, or if power brokers in the party offer her a deal that provides more benefits than taking on the role of chair, she can pivot accordingly. Earlier this year, I suggested that strategically, she would be better off concentrating on her job as Taichung mayor until she is term-limited out of office in December next year. Taichung mayor is obviously a full-time job, and concurrently running the Taipei-headquartered party runs the risk of doing one or both jobs poorly and making mistakes that could imperil her shot at the presidency in 2028. The situation has changed. Current KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), knowing he is likely to face challengers of a higher caliber than the three relative nobodies already declared, has gone all in on appealing to the base. The base is more likely to turn out to vote in the chair election, so this makes some strategic sense in the short term.
Among Thailand’s Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) villages, a certain rivalry exists between Arunothai, the largest of these villages, and Mae Salong, which is currently the most prosperous. Historically, the rivalry stems from a split in KMT military factions in the early 1960s, which divided command and opium territories after Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) cut off open support in 1961 due to international pressure (see part two, “The KMT opium lords of the Golden Triangle,” on May 20). But today this rivalry manifests as a different kind of split, with Arunothai leading a pro-China faction and Mae Salong staunchly aligned to Taiwan. Last spring at Arunothai’s Jiaolian School, principal Wang Mingming (王明明) had forewarned me of the division between villages, saying, “We are not like the people in Mae Salong. They are rich. Because of the Taiwanese.” Arunothai has in recent years become split in its loyalties between Taiwan and China (see part one, “A tale of two schools,” on May 15), but in Mae Salong, links to Taiwan remain strong. Taiwan-funded monuments pay homage to the Lost Army, villagers wear T-shirts emblazoned with the Republic of China (ROC) flag and tea plantations grown Taiwan’s most famous tea varieties, including Dong Ding (“frozen peak”) Oolong, Oriental Beauty and Jin Xuan (Golden Daylily or Milk Oolong). Even the numerical classifications of the teas — Oolong No. 12 or No. 17, for example — are the same, and the shops resemble those found on Alishan. At the tomb of General Tuan Hsi-wen (段希文) — perched on a Mae Salong hilltop with a view of his ancestral homeland in China’s Yunnan province — a third generation villager wearing a vintage KMT army uniform, Yan Si-Chung (岩思中), greets visitors with sharp military salutes. “Both my father and my grandfather were soldiers in the KMT army,” the 44-year-old
| New Taipei City | 27-28 | 20% |  |
| Hsinchu County | 26-27 | 10% | |
| Hsinchu City | 26-27 | 10% | |
| Taipei City | 27-28 | 20% |  |
| Miaoli County | 24-26 | 10% | |
| Taoyuan City | 26-27 | 10% | |
| Keelung City | 27-28 | 20% | |
| Yunlin County | 26-27 | 10% | |
| Taichung City | 26-28 | 10% | |
| Nantou County | 25-26 | 10% | |
| Changhua County | 27-28 | 10% | |
| Chiayi County | 26-27 | 10% | |
| Chiayi City | 25-27 | 10% | |
| Tainan City | 27-28 | 10% | |
| Kaohsiung City | 27-28 | 10% | |
| Pingtung County | 26-27 | 10% | |
| Yilan County | 25-26 | 30% |  |
| Hualien County | 25-26 | 30% | |
| Taitung County | 25-27 | 30% | |
| Kinmen County | 27-28 | 10% | |
| Penghu County | 27-27 | 20% | |
| Lienchiang County | 27-28 | 20% | |
RSS