By Lawrence Chung in Taipei Taiwan’s parliament is set to prioritise review of a disputed NT$1.25 trillion (US$40 billion) special defence budget bill when its new session begins on Tuesday, as pressure mounts from Washington. But US President Donald Trump’s recent remarks about consulting Chinese President Xi Jinping on arms sales could complicate the debate, […]
Read MoreWASHINGTON: The Trump administration reached a trade deal with Taiwan on Thursday, with Taiwan agreeing to remove or reduce 99 percent of its tariff barriers, the office of the US Trade Representative said. The agreement comes as the US remains reliant on Taiwan for its production of computer chips, the exporting of which contributed to […]
Read MoreTAIPEI: Taiwan plans to send officials to assess US rare earths deposits with a goal to have such minerals refined on the island, Economy Minister Kung Ming-hsin said on Wednesday. President Donald Trump’s administration has stepped up efforts to secure US supplies of critical minerals after China rattled senior officials and global markets last year […]
Read MoreBy Khushboo Razdan in Washington China’s leader Xi Jinping held a phone call with US President Donald Trump on Wednesday, state media said, hours after a video conversation between Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin. According to the Chinese readout, Xi told Trump that the Taiwan question is the “most important” issue in China-US relations, […]
Read MoreBy Xinlu Liang in Beijing Wang Huning, mainland China’s top official on Taiwan affairs, told the vice-chairman of the Kuomintang (KMT), the island’s main opposition party, that Beijing sought to promote cross-strait exchanges and peace. KMT vice-chairman Hsiao Hsu-tsen was received by Wang, chairman of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and Beijing’s No 4 […]
Read MoreBy Hong Kong Beijing’s bold move to remove top generals accused of corruption reflects its strategic assessment that overhauling the armed forces is more urgent, and that the issue of Taiwan can wait, according to military analysts. The investigation into China’s top commanders, Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli, has left the Central Military Commission (CMC), […]
Read MoreRussian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu told Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi that Moscow continues to support Beijing over Taiwan, state news agency TASS reported on Sunday. China and Russia have forged close ties in recent years and declared a “no limits” strategic partnership days before Russian President Vladimir Putin sent tens of thousands of […]
Read MoreBy Cao Jiaxuanin Beijing The foreign ministry in Beijing has urged citizens to avoid travelling to Japan ahead of Lunar New Year as the row over Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s November comments about Taiwan rumbles on. A statement issued on Monday said: “With the Lunar New Year approaching, the foreign ministry and the Chinese embassy […]
Read MoreBy Seong Hyeon Choi In the US State Department’s catalogue of priorities for the next five years, Taiwan rates exactly zero mentions. The department’s Agency Strategic Plan does list peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific as a goal but its top focus after national security is the western hemisphere. The plan sets out the direction […]
Read MoreTAIPEI: A Chinese reconnaissance drone briefly flew over the Taiwan-controlled Pratas Islands at the top end of the South China Sea on Saturday, in what Taiwan’s defense ministry called a “provocative and irresponsible” move. Democratically governed Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory, reports Chinese military activity around it on an almost daily basis, […]
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