Chu Wins KMT Chair Election Former New Taipei City Mayor Eric Chu won the Chinese Nationalist (KMT) party chairperson election, held on September 25, with 45.78% of the vote. Chu’s major rivals were party-affiliated NGO Sun Yat-sen School President Chang Ya-chung, who received 32.59%, and incumbent Johnny Chiang, a legislator and self-styled reformer who came…
By Austin Babb and Jason Wu New Chief Named for Mainland Affairs Former Minister of Justice Chiu Tai-san was sworn in on February 23 as the new Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) minister. He replaces Chen Ming-tong, who has been appointed to head the National Security Bureau (NSB). During the swearing-in ceremony, Chiu pledged to resume…
In Taiwan, the emergence of smaller parties has been part of the island’s democratic development. The unexpected victory of political newcomer Chen Po-wei for a seat in the Legislative Yuan in this January’s elections has drawn fresh attention to the position of minor parties in Taiwan’s political arena. Chen ran on the ticket of the…
The Ministry of National Defense Launches Fighter Program The Air Force commander, General Shen Yi-ming, signed a memorandum with the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology to award the research institute, a unit of the Ministry of National Defense, with a NT$68.6 billion (US$2.22 billion) contract to build 66 trainer fighter aircraft. The program, titled “Blue…
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,…
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…
Tsai Pays Respects to King of “Tailand” President Tsai visited the representative offices of the Kingdom of Thailand on October 17 to pay her respects following the death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who passed away October 13. During her visit, where Thai officials displayed photos of the king meeting with the late Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek,…
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…
Taiwan is urged to take early action in resolving outstanding trade issues. Despite continuing uncertainty about the ultimate fate of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade pact within the U.S. political process, AmCham Taipei’s 2016 “Doorknock” delegation to Washington D.C. heard from many observers inside and outside the U.S. government that Taiwan should take urgent steps…
Controversy rages in the United States over the likely fate of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). The TPP was signed on February 4, 2016, but to take effect it must be ratified by at least six of the signatories, including the United States and Japan. U.S. President Obama has written that the TPP would level the…
