DIPLOMACY
Sunak, Yoon ink accord
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, who is on a state visit to the UK, underlined the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait in the Downing Street Accord signed on Wednesday. The UK and South Korea reiterated their commitment to “openness and transparency in the Indo-Pacific” and “emphasize that our basic positions on Taiwan remain unchanged.” “Peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is an indispensable element in the security and prosperity of the international community,” the document said. The two countries “strongly oppose any unilateral attempts to change the status quo” in the East and South China Seas, calling on the protection of freedom of navigation and overflight, it said, adding that the two leaders vowed to deepen cooperation on security issues in pursuit of regional and global stability.
DIPLOMACY
New state offices open
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ official in charge of US affairs on Wednesday hailed the opening of four new representative offices in Taiwan by US states this year, saying it illustrates how the two countries are “ideal and reliable” partners. Speaking at an annual appreciation reception held by the American State Offices Association (ASOA) in Taipei, Wang Liang-yu (王良玉), head of the North American Affairs Department, said the offices opened by Arizona, Louisiana, North Carolina and Virginia represented the “breadth and depth” of the partnerships between Taiwan and US states. In addition, six US governors led trade missions in Taiwan and signed a wide range of agreements this year, she added. Meanwhile, Emily Scott, director of the Agricultural Trade Office under the American Institute in Taiwan, said there are now 17 ASOA members in Taiwan. When she first arrived there were only eight members, Scott said, adding that she was happy to have witnessed the growth firsthand. She also noted that Taiwan is a close US trade partner and the sixth-largest market for US agricultural products. The other US state offices and ASOA members are Minnesota, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Florida, Hawaii, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Wyoming, while Guam also has an office in Taiwan.
SOCIETY
Unclaimed lottery tickets
Eight NT$10 million (US$317,007) and five NT$2 million winning receipts from the July-August invoice lottery remain unclaimed, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The eight-digit serial number that won the NT$10 million special prize in the lottery was 21981893, it said. Some of the unclaimed prize-winning NT$10 million receipts include a NT$26 receipt issued by a 7-Eleven in Hsinchu’s East District (東區), a NT$55 receipt issued by a drinks shop in Taichung’s Situn District (西屯) and a NT$60 purchase at a PX Mart in Changhua County’s Fenyuan Township (芬園). Meanwhile, five of the 16 NT$2 million grand prizes for receipts with the serial number 39597522 were also unclaimed, the ministry said. Unclaimed winning receipts include a NT$33 purchase issued by Apple’s App Store, a NT$85 receipt issued by MOS Burger in Taipei’s Xinyi District (信義), a NT$242 receipt issued by a 7-Eleven in Taoyuan’s Taoyuan District (桃園), a NT$1,573 receipt issued by a steakhouse in Taichung’s Nantun District (南屯) and a NT$190 receipt for a top-up at a FamilyMart in Kaohsiung’s Siaogang District (小港). Those with the receipts can claim their winnings until Jan. 5.
Taipei and New Taipei City government officials are aiming to have the first phase of the Wanhua-Jungho-Shulin Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line completed and opened by 2027, following the arrival of the first train set yesterday. The 22km-long Light Green Line would connect four densely populated districts in Taipei and New Taipei City: Wanhua (萬華), Jhonghe (中和), Tucheng (土城) and Shulin (樹林). The first phase of the project would connect Wanhua and Jhonghe districts, with Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Chukuang (莒光) being the terminal stations. The two municipalities jointly hosted a ceremony for the first train to be used
MILITARY AID: Taiwan has received a first batch of US long-range tactical missiles ahead of schedule, with a second shipment expected to be delivered by 2026 The US’ early delivery of long-range tactical ballistic missiles to Taiwan last month carries political and strategic significance, a military source said yesterday. According to the Ministry of National Defense’s budget report, the batch of military hardware from the US, including 11 sets of M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and 64 MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems, had been scheduled to be delivered to Taiwan between the end of this year and the beginning of next year. However, the first batch arrived last month, earlier than scheduled, with the second batch —18 sets of HIMARS, 20 MGM-140 missiles and 864 M30
Representative to the US Alexander Yui delivered a letter from the government to US president-elect Donald Trump during a meeting with a former Trump administration official, CNN reported yesterday. Yui on Thursday met with former US national security adviser Robert O’Brien over a private lunch in Salt Lake City, Utah, with US Representative Chris Stewart, the Web site of the US cable news channel reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “During that lunch the letter was passed along, and then shared with Trump, two of the sources said,” CNN said. O’Brien declined to comment on the lunch, as did the Taipei
A woman who allegedly attacked a high-school student with a utility knife, injuring his face, on a Taipei metro train late on Friday has been transferred to prosecutors, police said yesterday. The incident occurred near MRT Xinpu Station at about 10:17pm on a Bannan Line train headed toward Dingpu, New Taipei City police said. Before police arrived at the station to arrest the suspect, a woman surnamed Wang (王) who is in her early 40s, she had already been subdued by four male passengers, one of whom was an off-duty Taipei police officer, police said. The student, 17, who sustained a cut about
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