Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/08/10
By: Christie Chen

Taipei, Aug. 10 (CNA) Robert W. Forden, who has over two decades of U.S. Foreign

Service experience, has assumed the position of deputy director of the American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT’s) Taipei Office, the AIT said Monday.

Forden served as chief of the AIT’s Kaohsiung Branch from 2002 to 2005. Before taking up his new post at the AIT, he was economic counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv.

“Forden has extensive experience working in the Asia-Pacific region and on regional issues,” the AIT said in a statement.

His other previous positions included deputy economic counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, deputy director and political chief of U.S. Department of State’s Office of Chinese and Mongolian Affairs, and economic officer at the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan News
Date: 2015-08-10
By: Jocylin FC, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

Tsai Ing-wen, the presidential candidate of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), said

during an interview on August 9 that China should respect the choices made by the people of Taiwan.

Tsai said that the most essential mission of a negotiator and policymaker is to find the common ground with the opponents. In the case of the cross-strait relation, maintaining the status quo is the best for both parties.

Tsai pointed out that the current environment is different from 2012. Since the Sunflower Movement in 2014, the general public has undergone a new phase of change. Many people are appalled by the lack of transparency in cross-strait affairs, and the injustice in the society.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/08/10
By: Yang Shu-min and Romulo Huang

Taipei, Aug. 10 (CNA) The Council of Agriculture elevated Monday its estimates of agricultural losses from Typhoon Soudelor in Taiwan to NT$1.55 billion (US$49.08 million).

Citing figures valid as of 6 p.m. Monday, the COA said Yunlin County in central Taiwan suffered the biggest agricultural losses, estimated at NT$253.15 million, followed by Tainan City with losses of NT$237.58 million, Yilan County NT$217.62 million, Kaohsiung City NT$163.6 million, Pingtung County NT$160.41 million and Hualien County NT$128.06 million.

Losses in the category of agricultural produce were estimated at NT$1.33 billion, with 24,657 hectares of crops affected, the COA said.

Bananas were the hardest hit crop, suffering losses of NT$252.01 million over 3,728 hectares, while pomelos, guavas, bamboo shoots and papayas were also damaged by the storm.     [FULL  STORY]

Want China Times
Date: 2015-08-10
By: CNA

Typhoon Soudelor left behind widespread damage when it barreled through Taiwan on Saturday, including an estimated NT$560 million (US$17.7 million) in damage to eight wind turbines operated by Taiwan Power Company (Taipower).

The state-run energy supplier said the typhoon’s powerful gusts of up to 202 to 220 kilometers per hour blew six of its 18 wind turbines at Taichung’s Gaomei wetlands to the ground and severely damaged two of its six turbines in northern Taiwan’s Shimen Wind Power Station.

The six Taichung turbines suffered an estimated NT$500 million (US$15.8 million) in damage and the two in Shimen about NT$60 million (US$1.9 million) in damage, Taipower said.

Soudelor also left more homes in Taiwan without power than any other storm in the country’s history, but Taipower had restored electricity to most homes as of Sunday afternoon.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/08/09
By: Milly Lin, Hsu Chih-wei and S.C. Chang

Taipei, Aug. 9 (CNA) Typhoon Soudelor left behind widespread damage when it barreled through Taiwan on Saturday, including an estimated NT$560 million (US$17.67 million) in damage to eight wind turbines operated by Taiwan Power Company (Taipower).

The state-run energy supplier said the typhoon’s powerful gusts of up to 202 to 220 kilometers per hour blew six of its 18 wind turbines at Taichung’s Gaomei Wetlands to the ground and severely damaged two of its six turbines in northern Taiwan’s Shimen Wind Power Station.

The six Taichung turbines suffered an estimated NT$500 million in damage and the two in Shimen about NT$60 million in damage, Taipower said.

Soudelor also left more homes in Taiwan without power than any other storm in the country’s history, but Taipower had restored electricity to most of those homes as of Sunday afternoon.     [FULL  STORY]