Golden Anniversary For Taiwan, Swazi Ties President Tsai Ing-wen marked Taiwan’s 50 years of diplomatic ties with one of its oldest allies, Swaziland, during her visit to the African nation. In a speech, Tsai declared that the two sides were “sworn brothers” and would always look out for each other. Tsai arrived in Swaziland April…
U.S. Steel Tariffs Hit Taiwan Taiwan sent a delegation to the United States on March 18 with the goal of negotiating an exemption to the steep tariff hike on imported steel and aluminum imposed by President Donald Trump. On March 8, Trump signed an order imposing a 25% tariff on imported steel and 10% on aluminum….
China Enshrines Xi at 19th Party Congress China held its Nineteenth Party Congress October 18-24 in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. The event gathered 2,280 delegates representing the party’s 89 million members and all of China’s provinces, including Taiwan, reflecting China’s longstanding claim to the island. The party congress, held every five years…
Sing! China Event Ends in Violence A singing event staged at National Taiwan University (NTU) in cooperation with the Taipei City and Shanghai governments and the popular Chinese talent show Sing! China was abruptly cut short as protests degenerated into violence on September 25. The protests were sparked by anger over damage to NTU’s track and…
The organization provides a platform for interaction with others in the region. Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, or APEC, is an economic forum comprising 21 economies on both sides of the Pacific. Its members are home to around to 2.8 billion people and account for nearly 60% of global GDP and half of world trade. But…
Tsai visits allies, transits USA Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen departed on January 6 for a nine-day journey to visit Central American allies, including stopovers in Houston and San Francisco. The trip occurred amid heightened tensions with China over Tsai’s congratulatory phone call to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump. Tsai’s first stop was a transit in Houston, Texas,…
After spending around two decades in Taiwan, three years ago TOPICS contributor Mark Caltonhill returned to live in the UK. Within weeks, he was missing “three-cups” slow cooking, kongxin cai (空心菜), and perhaps most of all, stinky tofu (臭豆腐). Here is his report. Arriving at Chiang Kai-Shek International Airport in the 1990s after each annual…
Ill-Gotten Assets Body Targets KMT HQ The Ill-gotten Assets Settlement Committee under Chairman Wellington Koo announced that the KMT must transfer its shares of Central Investment Co. and its subsidiary Hsinyutai Co. to the government after it was determined that these companies were illegally obtained assets. The Committee acts under legislation that aims to return…
Vice President Chen visits Taiwan’s diplomatic allies Vice President Chen Chien-jen visited Taiwan’s diplomatic ally, the Dominican Republic, from August 14 to 17 to attend the inauguration of President Danilo Medina and hold meetings with Medina to exchange views on future bilateral cooperation. Chen also met with Taiwanese business owners in the country. Shortly after…
An international tribunal’s recent ruling on the South China Sea leaves Taiwan in a sensitive position. In September last year, President Tsai Ing-wen, then the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate, told a diplomatic reception: “A future DPP administration will be committed to following…the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)…
