Focus Taiwan
Date: 01/14/2020
By: Chiang Chin-yeh and Y.F. Low8

Washington, Nov. 14 (CNA) The U.S. State Department said Saturday that the United States takes no position on the issue of Taiwan sovereignty, after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was criticized by Beijing as "meddling in China's internal affairs" with his comment that "Taiwan has not been a part of China."

"The U.S. has long had a One-China policy," a State Department spokesperson said in a statement to Taiwan media. "This is distinct from Beijing's 'One China Principle' under which the Chinese Communist Party asserts sovereignty over Taiwan. The United Stat6es takes no position on sovereignty over Taiwan."

The spokesperson said the U.S.' One China policy remains guided by the Taiwan Relations Act, the three Joint Communiques between the U.S. and China, and the Six Assurances to Taiwan, as it has been in the past four decades.

"The fundamental U.S. interest is that the Taiwan question be resolved peacefully, without coercion, and in a manner acceptable to the people on both sides of the Strait — as Beijing promised," the spokesperson said.    [FULL  STORY]

‘MODEL FOR DEMOCRACY’: Pompeo said in a radio interview that support for Taiwan was bipartisan and that weapons sales were part of the US’ commitment to the nation

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 14, 20207
By Lin Chia-nan / Staff reporter

The government yesterday welcomed a statement by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that “Taiwan has not been a part of China,” saying that the two sides of the Taiwan Strait should maintain the “status quo” based on equal dignity.

During a telephone interview with the Hugh Hewitt Show radio program aired on Thursday, Pompeo was asked to comment on the US’ commitments to Taiwan’s security and the opinions of radical elements of the Chinese Communist Party that Taiwan should be “retaken by force if necessary.”

In response, Pompeo said it was important to “get the language right.”

“Taiwan has not been a part of China, and that was recognized with the work that the [former US president Ronald] Reagan administration did to lay out the policies that the United States has adhered to now for three-and-a-half decades, and done so under both administrations,” he said, referring to Reagan’s “six assurances” made to Taipei in 1982.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 11/10/2020
By: Pan Tzu-yu and Joseph Yeh

Taipei, Nov. 10 (CNA) A second round of the Taiwan-European Union (EU) Dialogue on Digital Economy is scheduled to be staged in December, albeit in virtual format due to travel restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the National Development Council (NDC) announced Tuesday.

The annual dialogue, first launched last year to enhance Taiwan-EU exchanges in the digital economy field, was originally set to be held in Taipei this June but was postponed due to the pandemic, said NDC Deputy Minister Yu Chien-hwa (游建華).

The two sides recently agreed to hold the meeting in virtual format next month, with the exact date yet to be announced, said Yu.

The upcoming dialogue will focus on issues concerning overall digital policy, data economics, information security certification, artificial intelligence and blockchain, among other topics, according to Yu.    [FULL  STORY]

BNT162B2: The nation is hopeful of procuring Pfizer’s vaccine candidate through the COVAX alliance once its efficacy and safety study is completed, the CECC said

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 11, 2020
By: Lee I-chia / Staff reporter

Taiwan is hopeful of purchasing a COVID-19 vaccine being developed by Pfizer Inc and BioNTech SE as early as the first quarter of next year through a global vaccine alliance, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said yesterday.

The US pharmaceutical giant and its German partner on Monday announced that their vaccine candidate — BNT162b2 — was more than 90 percent effective in preventing the disease.

Asked if Taiwan would be able to get hold of the vaccine, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the center, said: “We are hopeful of obtaining it, as it is on our list… but the efficacy of the vaccine would be discussed further after a final report on the study comes out.”

At a news conference in the afternoon, Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥), who is the CECC’s spokesman, said that BNT162b2 might become the first vaccine to receive emergency use authorization in many countries.

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 09 November, 2020
By: Andrew Ryan

A new handbook is offering tips for new immigrants to Taiwan, in six different languages. It’s the work of the New Taipei City Government, which is home to a large population of immigrants. 

The book is available in six languages, including: Burmese, English, Indonesian, Mandarin, Thai and Vietnamese. It answers more than 60 commonly-asked questions. One question answered in the book is: “If I’m pregnant, what kind of economic assistance can I apply for?”   [FULL  STORY]

US special forces exit quarantine after landing in island nation to train Taiwanese Navy for 1st time since 1979

AA
Date: 09.11.2020
By: Riyaz ul Khaliq  

For the first time since the US and Taiwan ceased bilateral ties in 1979, Taipei on Monday announced the arrival of US marines to train Taiwanese soldiers.

Taiwan's Naval Command said a contingent of US marines — Marine Raiders — arrived upon the invitation of Taiwan's military and will begin training Taiwanese troops for four weeks starting today, the daily Taiwan News reported.

The US marines came roughly two weeks ago but were under quarantine to avoid coronavirus infection.

Taiwanese soldiers will be trained by the US marines' special operations troops in assault boat and speedboat infiltration operations at the Tsoying Naval Base in the port city of Kaohsiung in southern Taiwan.    [FULL  STORY]

Livestreamer emphasizes video will not be published

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/11/09
By:  Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — While filming at a deserted Taipei hospital, a livestreamer found the corpse of a 38-year-old man who has been missing for over a year.

The livestreamer, who goes by Xiao Ji (小雞), was filming a video with another person around midnight on Nov. 6 on Zhengzhou Road in Datong District when they discovered the body of a man in the hospital's x-ray room. The man appeared to have committed suicide.

The duo immediately notified the police. After the authorities located the body, they found a bag containing an ID card and cellphone belonging to a 38-year-old man from Taichung who had been reported missing.

The man's family confirmed the identity of the body the next day and gave a red envelope to the livestreamer. Xiao Ji said in a video on Saturday (Nov. 7) that he was going to give the money to charity.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 11/09/2020
By: Wu Jui-chi and Evelyn Kao

Taoyuan, Nov. 9 (CNA) Prosecutors in Taoyuan have indicted two men on suspicion of operating a video piracy streaming site called "8maple.ru" (楓林網) and requested that more than NT$67 million (US$2.35 million) in assets from their illegal dealings be frozen.

The two men — a 33-year-old surnamed Chen (陳) and a 32-year-old surnamed Chuang (莊) — were indicted for violating the Copyright Act, the Taoyuan District Prosecutors Office said in a statement released Monday.

It also asked for their assets to be frozen as the website has infringed on an estimated NT$1 billion worth of copyrighted material in both the foreign and domestic movie and TV industries in case the plaintiffs seek to recover their losses, Taoyuan prosecutors said.

According to the indictment, the two men collaborated with Chinese nationals in the scheme since 2015 to use offshore cloud hosting services to download unauthorized movies, dramas and television series and offer the pirated programs online free of charge.    [FULL  STORY]

THREE-SIDED: China will likely continue its attempts to pressure Taiwan, while the US, under Joe Biden, is not likely to change its China strategy, Chen Ming-tong said

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 10, 2020
By: Chen Yu-fu and Aaron Tu / Staff reporters

China is not likely to change its policy toward Taiwan after the US presidential election, but it is likely to broaden its tactics to pressure Taiwanese businesses and the public into accepting its “one China” political framework, Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chen Ming-tong (陳明通) said in Taipei yesterday.

Chen made the remarks while presenting a report on “The impact of US presidential results on cross-strait relations” at a meeting of the legislature’s Internal Administration Committee.

While several lawmakers expressed concerns about a Taiwan policy shift under the administration of US president-elect Joe Biden, with some describing Biden as being “China-friendly” and others pointing to Biden’s opposition to a bill to strengthen Taiwan’s security in 1999, Chen told lawmakers that a fundamental change in US support for Taiwan was unlikely.

“Although there might be some changes in Biden’s tactics toward China, there will be no change in the China strategy,” he said.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan Inernational
Date: 08 November, 2020
By: Paula Chao

President Tsai Ing-wen has extended her congratulations to US President-elect Joe Biden and his running mate Kamala Harris on winning the 2020 presidential race.

Tsai tweeted on Sunday that the values on which both sides have built their relationship could not be stronger. Tsai said she looks forward to furthering the friendship between the two sides and working together to contribute to the international community.      [FULL  STORY]