US SENATOR WORRIED: A spokesman said the government appreciated its US friends’ support, but it would continue to strengthen ties with allies

Taipei Times
Date: May 17, 2018
By: Stacy Hsu  /  Staff reporter

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday dismissed a US senator’s concern that Paraguay

would be the next nation to break diplomatic ties with Taiwan, saying that ties remain strong and solid.

“Relations between the government and its Paraguayan counterpart remain stable. Our bilateral cooperation has been going smoothly, and both sides have seen close educational and cultural exchanges,” ministry spokesman Andrew Lee (李憲章) said.

The ministry appreciated its US friends’ support and concerns, but would continue to consolidate ties with diplomatic allies amid Beijing’s repeated attempts to poach them, which has destabilized the region, Lee said.

US Senator Marco Rubio on Tuesday said at a US Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee hearing that he had heard that Paraguay could be the next Western Hemisphere ally to switch recognition to China, after Panama in June last year and the Dominican Republic last month.    [FULL  STORY]

Chicago Tribune
Date: May 15, 2018
By: Simon Denyer, Washington Post

U.S. clothing retailer Gap is the latest company to apologize to China for failing to reflect

Beijing’s territorial claims – on a map shown on a T-shirt for sale in North America.

The offending T-shirt showed a map of China without including Taiwan, the self-ruled island that Beijing says is an integral part of the country. It also failed to show what China calls “Southern Tibet” – a huge swathe of territory it claims in the northeast Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh – and failed to draw a line around China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea. That drew the ire of some Chinese Netizens after a photo of the T-shirt on sale in Niagara, Canada, was posted online.

Gap quickly apologized, even though it appears the T-shirt is not for sale in China.

“Gap Inc. respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of China. We’ve learned a Gap brand T-shirt sold in some overseas markets mistakenly failed to reflect the correct map of China. We sincerely apologize for this unintentional error,” Gap said in a statement, according to China’s Global Times newspaper.    [FULL  STORY]

The young lady enjoys large motorcycles, cosplay, and is making a buzz on Taiwanese internet forums

Taiwan News
Date: 2018/05/15
By:: Duncan DeAeth, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Recent photos and videos of a mysterious masked super heroine

have been circulating around Taiwanese internet forums, with the young masked lady attracting the curiosity of many, and possibly capturing several hearts as well.

The young lady driving around central and southern Taiwan has been identified only by the nickname Xiaoyang (小羊), and is recognizable on Taiwan’s road for the for the large three wheel cycle she rides, often in costume, or with her trademark “kitten ear” helmet.

Xiaoyang has been photographed and recorded on Taiwan’s highways and around famous roads like the one circling Sun Moon Lake over the past week, and began making a buzz on internet forums over the weekend.

Liberty Times reports that she has been identified, but does not want to reveal her face. She has only offered to do phone interviews with media.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2018/05/15
By: Sabine Cheng and Evelyn Kao

Taipei, May 15 (CNA) The Ministry of Culture expressed hope Tuesday that there was no

Chinese political interference after Da Ai TV, a Taiwanese channel, decided to pull a self-produced drama series from its broadcast schedule after the first two episodes were aired last week, allegedly because of strong criticism from Chinese netizens.

The series, which depicts the life story of a 91-year-old female volunteer for the Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation — which operates Da Ai TV — who worked as a nursing volunteer for Japanese soldiers in Guangzhou, in China’s Guangdong Province during World War II, had its China premiere May 10.

China’s Global Times, an English-language Chinese newspaper under the People’s Daily, reported that the trailer for the drama released a day before the premiere sparked controversy because at the beginning the series, the storyline features Taiwanese servile attitude toward the Japanese.    [FULL  STORY]

Military analysts say increasingly aggressive ‘island encirclement’ exercises are designed to send message to independence-leaning leadership
 
South China Morning Post
Date: 14 May, 2018
By: Minnie Chan

Mainland China’s military will step up the pressure on Taiwan with more military exercises designed to send a warning to the island’s independence-leaning president, defence experts have said.

Their comments follow the People’s Liberation Army’s increasingly aggressive “island encirclement” drills over Taiwan, which on Friday saw the air force sending its planes in opposite directions around the island for the first time.

Song Zhongping, a former member of the PLA’s second artillery corps, the rocket wing’s predecessor, said that to reinforce the warning to Tsai Ing-wen’s administration, the mainland military would conduct targeted joint operational drills involving ground forces, the navy and the air force to strengthen its presence in the Taiwan Strait.   [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2018-05-14

President Tsai Ing-wen participated in a ceremony on Sunday to mark not just Mother’s

Day, but also an important Buddhist holiday.

President Tsai Ing-wen stands in front of the Chiang Kai-shek memorial in central Taipei… she’s here to offer a prayer for peace for Taiwan. This is the annual celebration of not only Mother’s Day but also for the birthday of the Buddha. This is also the anniversary of the nation’s largest relief organization – Tzu Chi – which holds the celebration on the second Sunday in May every year.

This year’s ceremony featured 144 Dharma masters who rang bells to share in a sign of peace and good wishes.

The president joined in the symbolic bathing of a Buddha statue to mark the occasion. Every year, as many as 30,000 people will join in the event. Tzu Chi estimates that more than 200,000 people participate in similar events held in dozens of countries around the globe.    [FULL  STORY]

The Ministry of National Defense said that the aircraft deviated from the M503 flight path, and approached the center line of the strait, likely conducting electronic surveillence

Taiwan News
Date: 2018/05/14
By: Duncan DeAeth, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Chinese military aircraft continue their drills around the Taiwan

Strait, with a Shaanxi Y-8 military transport plane spotted on the morning of Monday, May 14 traveling very closely to the M503 aviation route that has been causing controversy since December last year.

The aircraft was reportedly flying very close to the centerline of the Taiwan Strait, deviating further and further from the M503 route, likely for the purpose of electronic surveillance of Taiwan’s armed forces in the strait.

Liberty Times reports that the military transport aircraft began its flight this morning along the M503 route, but gradually began to deviate from the original M503 flight path, flying very close to the center line of the Strait. Officials with the Ministry of National Defense have previously warned of the likelihood that the Chinese Air Force would use the M503 route in such a manner.

The official emphasized that the aircraft was under surveillance the entire time, and Taiwan’s armed forces remain on full alert and in full control of the situation.
[FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2018/05/14
By: Wu Jui-chi and Flor Wang

Taipei, May 14 (CNA) Taoyuan has introduced new travel packages showcasing scenic spots and local festivals to give new immigrants a glimpse of the city’s beauty and culture, Mayor Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) said Monday.

One of the major industrial and commercial areas in northern Taiwan, Taoyuan is home to some 110,000 migrant workers and 58,000 foreign spouses, and it came up with the measure in line with a central government policy to form closer ties with Southeast Asia, Cheng said in a radio interview.

For a fee of NT$600 (about US$20) for a single-day trip, participants will be able to tour major tourist attractions in Taoyuan and take part in local festivals to enjoy the city’s culture, he said.    [FULL  STORY]