countries: 日本 台灣 阿根廷

title: 《NPB》林安可直送日職 從統一獅到西武獅 餅總：還好當初沒答應讓他二刀流

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體育中心/綜合報導

中職旅外喜訊再加一！前統一獅隊的強力左打「混血王子」林安可，9日西武獅舉辦高規格加盟記者會，正式批上「73號」戰袍。統一獅總教練「餅總」林岳平到場給予滿滿祝福，幽默表示還好當初沒讓林安可練二刀流，才能找到他的打擊天賦，對於子弟兵的旅外成就，感到相當開心。

今年28歲的林安可，爸爸是台灣人，媽媽是阿根廷人，因此擁有「混色王子」的外號，不僅擁有帥氣靦腆的臉蛋，更是近年來中職的強力左打代表。進入職棒的第二年就打出單季32轟的驚人成績，以新人王之姿，奪下當年的全壘打王，近兩個球季也都繳出20轟以上的表現。

如此出色的強打能力，受到日職球團的注意。林安可在去年球季結束，達到旅外資格，如今得到西武獅的青睞。西武獅社長在記者會上表示，「按照日職規範還不能公布合約細節，但是可以分享的是，球團對林安可的期待不只是一、二年，而是希望他能在日職打很多年的複數年合約。」

見證子弟兵從中職直送日職的獅隊總教練林岳平，在記者會上表示，林安可剛加入球隊的目標，是想要當台灣第一個二刀流選手。還好最後跟安可一起選擇了野手這條路，沒有誤到他，也開創他的打擊天賦。他是一個不用練球就可以打全壘打的打者，希望他到日本能夠發揮改變戰局的特色。


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氣溫下探 10 度！火鍋控出動 羽葉麻辣火鍋祭出元月最強檔 哈根達斯、PARM 無限吃到飽再送日本 A5 和牛

2026-01-09   【范麗玉記者 綜合報導】

隨著寒流一波波來襲，全台氣溫下探 10 度以下，火鍋市場再度升溫。主打高 CP 值的「羽葉麻辣火鍋」搶攻冬季聚餐商機，推出元月限定優惠，不僅提供 10 多種暖胃湯底，更升級自助吧內容，打造甜點界最狂的「冰淇淋聯合國」，哈根達斯迷你杯、脆皮雪糕與日本國民品牌 PARM 雪糕全面無限供應；即日起預約開鍋，再加碼贈送「日本 A5 和牛」，成為寒流聚餐的話題首選。

亮點一｜甜點控暴動哈根達斯迷你杯、雪糕＋PARM 雪糕無限吃

羽葉麻辣火鍋此次自助吧全面升級，Häagen-Dazs 哈根達斯全系列強勢進駐，包含高單價的「迷你杯」與「脆皮雪糕」通通不限量供應；同時引進日本家喻戶曉的經典冰品 PARM 雪糕，以濃郁巧克力包裹細緻冰淇淋，入口即化的奢華口感深受甜點控喜愛。業者笑稱：「光吃冰就回本」，也讓羽葉被網友封為火鍋界的「冰淇淋聯合國」。

亮點二｜肉控天堂現點現切肉品 預約即送日本 A5 和牛

羽葉堅持「現點現切」供餐方式，確保肉品新鮮度與最佳口感。活動期間只要提前預約並完成開鍋，成人即可獲贈「嚴選日本 A5 和牛」乙份，油花細緻、入口即化，讓不少饕客直呼誠意十足。

亮點三｜寒流進補麻油雞佛、薑母鴨與隱藏版熟食任你夾

針對冬令進補需求，羽葉自助吧熟食區同步升級，提供鮮甜飽滿的「麻油雞佛」、暖身必吃的薑母鴨鍋，還有老饕激推的低脂滷蛋白、香滷豬頭皮等隱藏版熟食，搭配多款港點與炸物，選擇豐富、CP 值再突破。

業者表示，羽葉麻辣火鍋以寬敞舒適的用餐空間，搭配現切肉品、多樣海鮮、熟食與甜點自助吧，提供上百種食材選擇，希望在寒冬時節成為親友聚餐、尾牙春酒的首選品牌。

【2026 羽葉迎新甜蜜禮・優惠資訊】活動期間：即日起 ～ 2026/02/05

超狂回饋內容：哈根達斯雪糕／迷你杯＋PARM 雪糕無限吃到飽預約即送嚴選日本 A5 和牛尾牙、春酒「10 人同行 1 人免費」消費滿額抽「五星級泰國旅遊行程」NEW！消費滿千送精美紅包袋（數量有限，送完為止）

訂位資訊：除夕暨農曆過年訂位熱烈開跑中（台中館／三重館同步開放）※ 特別提醒：三重館除夕當日公休

羽葉麻辣火鍋-三重都會館

位於新北市三重區集賢路，交通便利、空間寬敞明亮。不論開車或機車前來都很方便 —— 用餐時只要憑店家提供的磁扣並於結帳前告知，即可享兩小時免費停車。機車亦可停放於附近停車格。

此外，三重店特別推出「特約停車場優惠」，與以下停車場合作，以解決停車不便的問題：

USPACE 三重極限停車場（集賢路 × 五華街路口）

台灣聯通集賢場（三重國稅局大樓地下停車場）

只要在上述停車場停車、憑磁扣消費滿新台幣 2,000 元，即可享兩小時免費停車，讓顧客開鍋用餐更加便利安心。

羽葉麻辣火鍋-台中都會館

座落於台中捷運南屯站附近，交通便捷，並備有免費停車場，讓顧客開車或騎車前來都相當方便。

countries: 日本 泰國 台灣

taiwan-subdivisions: 三重區 新北市 南屯 三重


title: 宜蘭縣政府「運動處籌備處」揭牌  打造全民運動城市

taiwan-subdivisions: 宜蘭縣 成功 宜蘭

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記者蘇凱中/宜蘭報導

「宜蘭縣政府運動處籌備處」揭牌儀式，9日在宜蘭縣立體育館地下一樓舉行，代理縣長林茂盛帶領府內同仁及體育界代表共同見證這歷史性的一刻，籌備處的成立，象徵著宜蘭縣體育事務將邁向更專業化、組織化的新里程碑，也宣示縣府將投入更多資源，全面升級縣內的運動環境。

林茂盛表示，體育是城市的活力泉源，也是縣民健康的基石。隨著運動風氣日盛，體育事務日益繁雜，提升行政組織層級勢在必行。林茂盛強調，成立運動處籌備處是為了回應縣民對優質運動環境的期待，透過專責單位的規劃，能更有效率地整合資源、培訓優秀選手並優化場館設施。期許籌備處能發揮火車頭的作用，帶領宜蘭體育展翅高飛，讓宜蘭不僅是好山好水的觀光大縣，更是充滿活力的運動大縣。

揭牌地點「宜蘭縣立體育館地下一樓」曾是宜蘭縣承辦102年全國中等學校運動會、106年全國運動會以及110年全國原住民族運動會的籌備處基地。這三個重大賽事的成功舉辦，不僅累積豐富的賽務經驗，更凝聚縣府團隊的向心力。此外，宜蘭縣近年來在推廣全民運動上成績斐然，已連續四年榮獲教育部體育署「運動i臺灣」計畫特優獎項的肯定。選在此地成立運動處籌備處，正是希望能承襲過去舉辦全國級賽事的榮耀與經驗，將這股能量轉化為推動未來體育政策的動力。


title: 蘭陽黃金柑品質評鑑頒獎  金柑果品創意展成果

taiwan-subdivisions: 員山 宜蘭縣 宜蘭 礁溪 前金 頭城

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記者蘇凱中/宜蘭報導

第21屆蘭陽黃金柑品質評鑑競賽，來自員山、礁溪、頭城三大產區共36位果農參賽，經專業評審嚴格評選後，由礁溪鄉農會輔導的蔡玉美榮獲「金柑王」殊榮，員山鄉農會輔導的李讚在獲得亞軍，礁溪鄉農會輔導的游宏俊獲得季軍，9日在宜蘭縣政府縣民大廳頒獎，同步辦理「2025金柑果品創意活動大募集」，展現宜蘭金柑產業在品質管理與品牌建立上的重要成果。

代理縣長林茂盛表示，每逢歲末年節即是宜蘭金柑盛產季節，全縣金柑種植面積約194公頃，年產量約2,000公噸。透過品質評鑑與產地分級制度，不僅協助農友精進栽培管理，也讓消費市場能清楚辨識高品質的宜蘭金柑。今年金柑生產過程歷經多次天候挑戰，得獎果農仍能培育出兼具糖度、風味與外觀的優質果品，實屬不易，呼籲民眾多加選購在地金柑，以實際行動支持辛苦的果農。

頒獎典禮同步辦理「2025金柑果品創意活動大募集」成果展示，集結多家在地業者共同參與，包括夕漫商行、芒草Cafe、勁好麥烘焙、溫妮優格、DAYDREAM白日夢咖啡甜點餐食空間、愛工坊－心咖啡、蘭陽烏石港海景酒店，以及礁溪鄉農會、員山鄉農會與金柑策略聯盟等，推出金柑甜點、飲品與創意料理，也讓農友的辛勞成果，透過餐桌與生活被更多人認識。

宜蘭縣農會總幹事李長珊指出，縣農會持續以評鑑、策略聯盟及創意研發三軌並進，串聯農友與在地業者，讓「蘭陽黃金柑」不僅是農產品，更成為具有風味識別與市場價值的宜蘭品牌。 農業處指出，本屆評鑑由農改場、學界及農政單位組成評審團，依糖度、色澤、外觀及風味等指標評分，確保結果具專業性與公信力。目前金柑正值盛產期，已於各農會、合作社及「鮮饗宜蘭農舖」等通路同步販售，歡迎民眾把握產季，選購最具宜蘭風味的季節水果。

這項評鑑前三名分別是礁溪鄉農會輔導的蔡玉美、員山鄉農會輔導的李讚在、礁溪鄉農會輔導的游宏俊。另選出十位優選果農，分別為員山鄉農會輔導的羅錫恆、游耀東、林溪源，礁溪鄉農會輔導的藍文賢，蘭陽金柑合作社林庭財、林俊吉，青果社宜蘭分社林明禧，青果社宜蘭分社林胡敏、林良翰，頭城鎮農會黃正雄。

金柑正值盛產期，民眾可洽詢礁溪鄉農會03-9882924、員山鄉農會03-9222161轉22、蘭陽金柑生產合作社0921-952510、青果社宜蘭分社03-9322302、金棗運銷合作社03-9888066，或前往宜蘭縣農會「鮮饗宜蘭農舖」（宜蘭縣宜蘭市林森路155號）選購，支持在地農友，也把最具宜蘭風味的季節水果帶回家。


title: Rain 完成 2.5 億美元 C 輪融資，即將為全球企業擴展穩定幣驅動支付基礎設施

taiwan-subdivisions: 成功 新市

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此輪融資由 ICONIQ 領投，帶來 Rain 的總融資額超過 3.38 億美元，而該公司估值達 19.5 億美元——在短短 10 個月內，升值超過 17 倍。

這筆新資金協助 Rain 擴大全球合規業務據點，深化平台功能和投資於重新定義全球支付方式的新產品。

紐約2026年1月9日 /美通社/ — Rain 是企業級穩定幣驅動支付基礎設施公司，今天宣佈已完成由 ICONIQ 領投的 2.5 億美元 C 輪融資。此融資得到 Sapphire Ventures、Dragonfly、Bessemer Venture Partners、Galaxy Ventures、FirstMark、Lightspeed、Norwest 和 Endeavor Catalyst 參與。此輪融資為 Rain 帶來超過 3.38 億美元總融資，公司估值達 19.5 億美元，並距 A 輪融資僅 10 個月，距 B 輪融資僅四個月。

穩定幣已從加密貨幣市場的投機角落，迅速發展為全球最大價值轉移渠道之一。下一個普及階段促使代幣化貨幣成為企業轉移資金和消費者獲得報酬、儲蓄和消費的預設方式。跨越這鴻溝需要基礎設施，這基礎設施除了協助企業轉至鏈上支付軌道的，也同時保留用戶已信任兼熟悉的體驗。然而，Rain 的科技正是為此而設。

Rain 的行政總裁兼聯合創辦人 Farooq Malik 表示：「雖然穩定幣正在迅速成為 21 世紀資金流動方式，但是全球用戶採用則需要正常運作的金融卡與應用程式。去年，雖然我們的活躍金融卡用戶數量增加 30 倍，而年度支付額增加 38 倍，但是我們仍處於起步階段。這筆資金協助我們向新市場推廣基礎設施，並幫助更多企業於各地迅速上線和擴展規模。」

Rain 的端到端支付平台協助多間企業與單一合作夥伴合作，從而推出合規的穩定幣金融卡。這些金融卡可於全部接受 Visa 的地方內使用、提供獎賞、兌換法幣為穩定幣、支援安全錢包和促進支付。現在，Rain 的科技支援超過 200 個家合作夥伴（包括 Western Union、Nuvei 和 KAST ），每年交易超過 30 億美元。這些建基於 Rain 的程式可接觸超過 25 億人，並從日常消費（例如早晨咖啡或機票等）至關鍵業務支出（例如雲端服務和數碼廣告等），支援一切所需。

ICONIQ 合夥人 Kamran Zaki 表示：「我們認為我們正在見證從傳統支付網絡至可程式控制數碼資產基礎設施的轉變，而現在是個短暫空窗期，協助定義企業即將依賴的預設平台。我們認為，Rain 擁有全端科技、監管準備與實際規模的罕見組合。他們致力促使代幣化貨幣成為主流，而非小眾金融實驗。這可能引起大型企業共鳴，並迎合大型企業們從探索到生產階段所需。」

Rain 將利用 C 輪融資，擴大主要授權市場（北美、南美、歐洲、亞洲和非洲等）的業務。因此，合作夥伴可全球無縫地推出合規的解決方案。這筆資金也將協助 Rain 深化全端穩定幣支付平台（包括透過策略收購），並提前投資於創造企業和消費者感到無形兼穩定幣驅動支付的新產品。

在 Rain 的 C 輪融資中，Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz 擔任法律顧問。

關於 Rain：Rain 是全球穩定幣支付平台，專為企業、虛擬銀行、平台與開發者而設。該公司的科技協助合作夥伴透過全球支付卡、獎賞、出/入金融渠道、錢包和跨境支付渠道，即時合規地轉移、儲存和使用穩定幣。由於 Rain 已成為 Visa 的主要成員，所以其公司發行的金融卡可於任何接受 Visa 的地方內使用，支援超過 150 個國家/地區的數百萬筆交易。Rain 專為穩定幣原生構建，並得到全球超過 200 個組織信賴。該公司提供安全兼可擴展的基礎設施，協助全球自由兼即時資金活動。如欲了解更多，請瀏覽 https://www.rain.xyz/。

關於 ICONIQ：ICONIQ 是全球投資公司，致力透過特別群體，創造機會。我們的企業與成長型投資平台，攜手高瞻遠矚兼帶領產業未來的人士，實現非凡成果。我們憑藉我們特別群體的見解與連結，而支援自身投資組合公司於每個轉捩點（從創辦到 IPO 及以後）中，取得成功。我們強大產品系列包括 Adyen、Airbnb、Alibaba、Alteryx、Airtable、Anthropic、Automattic、BambooHR、Braze、Canva、Chime、Coupa、Databricks、Datadog、DeepL、ElevenLabs、Figma、Gitlab、Glean、Groww、Netskope、Procore、ServiceTitan、Sierra、Snowflake、Writer、Zoom 和 1Password 等。如欲查看更多資料，請瀏覽 https://www.iconiqcapital.com/growth。

傳媒聯絡：Lucas PiazzaRain 市場總監[email protected]


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AGING: As of last month, people aged 65 or older accounted for 20.06 percent of the total population and the number of couples who got married fell by 18,685 from 2024

Taiwan has surpassed South Korea as the country least willing to have children, with an annual crude birthrate of 4.62 per 1,000 people, Ministry of the Interior data showed yesterday.

The nation was previously ranked the second-lowest country in terms of total fertility rate, or the average number of children a woman has in her lifetime.

However, South Korea’s fertility rate began to recover from 2023, with total fertility rate rising from 0.72 and estimated to reach 0.82 to 0.85 by last year, and the crude birthrate projected at 6.7 per 1,000 people.

Japan’s crude birthrate was projected to fall below six, but hold above five per 1,000 people last year.

In contrast, Taiwan’s crude birthrate plummeted from 5.76 per 1,000 people in 2024 to 4.62 last year, and its total fertility rate is likely to fall below 0.8.

Ministry data showed that only 107,812 babies were born in Taiwan last year, or a crude birthrate of 4.62 per 1,000 people.

That was 27,044 babies fewer than 2024, when there were 134,856 newborns and a crude birthrate of 5.76 per 1,000 people, and was a record low since the ministry began compiling statistics.

The number of newborns has declined for 10 consecutive years, from 208,440 in 2016 to 193,844 in 2017; 181,601 in 2018; 177,767 in 2019; 165,249 in 2020; 153,820 in 2021; 138,986 in 2022; 135,571 in 2023; 134,856 in 2024; and 107,812 last year, ministry data showed.

Taiwan has officially become a “super-aged society” under UN criteria, which defines it as one in which people aged 65 or older make up at least 20 percent of the population.

Countries where people aged 65 or older make up 14 percent or more of the population are defined as “aged” societies, while those with 7 percent or more are “aging” societies.

As of the end of last month, Taiwan’s population aged 65 or` older totaled 4,673,155, or 20.06 percent of the total population, the ministry said.

The total population was 23,299,132 as of the end of last month, down 101,088 from the same period in 2024, the second consecutive year of population decline, the data showed.

There were 200,268 deaths last month, 1,839 fewer than in December 2024, with a crude death rate of 8.58 per 1,000 people, it showed.

As of the end of last year, people aged 14 or younger totaled 2,681,890, or 11.51 percent of the population, while people aged 15 to 64 reached 15,944,087, or 68.43 percent, the figures showed.

As for marriages, 104,376 couples tied the knot last year, down 18,685 from 2024, the ministry said, adding that 52,101 couples divorced last year, 1,368 fewer than a year earlier.

Minister of Health and Welfare Shih Chung-liang (石崇良) said that half a year ago, the ministry already expected Taiwan would become a “super-aged society.”

In response to the rapidly aging population, the Ministry of Health and Welfare has plans in four key areas — health promotion, decentralized care, reform of the benefits system and integration of technology — adjusting medical and care systems to meet the challenges associated with a “super-aged society,” he said.

Additional reporting by Chiu Chih-jou

title: Fertility rate falls to lowest globally


content_text:
’Up to Xi’ on Taiwan, but would be ’very unhappy’ with a change in ’status quo’: Trump

US President Donald Trump in an interview with the New York Times published on Thursday said that “it’s up to” Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) what China does on Taiwan, but that he would be “very unhappy” with a change in the “status quo.”

“He [Xi] considers it to be a part of China, and that’s up to him what he’s going to be doing, but I’ve expressed to him that I would be very unhappy if he did that, and I don’t think he’ll do that. I hope he doesn’t do that,” Trump said.

Trump made the comments in the context of a conversation about what lessons Xi might take away from Trump’s military operation in Venezuela.

US President Donald Trump is pictured in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on March 26 last year. Photo: AFP

Trump said he did not view the situations as analogous, because Taiwan did not pose the same type of threat to China that he has said the government of former Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro posed to the US.

He also repeated his belief that Xi would not make a move against Taiwan during his presidency, which ends in 2029.

“He may do it after we have a different president, but I don’t think he’s going to do it with me as president,” Trump said.

The Trump administration in a strategy document last year said that it aims to prevent conflict with China over Taiwan and the South China Sea by building up US and allies’ military power.

Beijing has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control.

The US has no formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, but Washington is the nation’s most important international backer and is required by law to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself.

Trump has largely avoided directly saying how he would respond to a rise in tensions over Taiwan.


title: Ex-soldier indicted for selling secrets

content_text:
A former Marine Corps soldier has been indicted for allegedly pledging allegiance to China in exchange for money and selling military secrets, with prosecutors in Kaohsiung seeking a heavy sentence.

Chen (陳), a petty officer second class who had served in a Marine Corps unit, became acquainted online with a Chinese national using the alias “Jixiang” (吉祥) in January last year, the Ciaotou District Prosecutors’ Office said in a statement yesterday.

Acting on instructions, Chen allegedly filmed videos at his residence in Kaohsiung between February and March last year showing himself holding China’s national flag, acknowledging Taiwan as part of China and expressing allegiance to Beijing, prosecutors said.

The Ciaotou District Prosecutors’ Office in Kaohsiung is pictured in an undated photograph. Photo: Tsai Ching-hua, Taipei Times

He allegedly received NT$200,000 after sending the video to Jixiang, the indictment says.

Prosecutors said Chen exploited his position between May and June last year to photograph and transmit various military documents to Jixiang using his smartphone, including information on weapons configurations and amphibious assault vehicle capabilities.

Chen in July last year allegedly informed his Chinese contact of President William Lai’s (賴清德) unannounced visit to a Kaohsiung military base and accepted a NT$10,000 bribe, prosecutors said.

That same month, Chen allegedly also sent documents and electronic records related to drone programs and the annual Han Kuang military exercises to Jixiang via the messaging app Line, the indictment says, adding that he had not yet received any payment for the information.

Acting on a tip, prosecutors and military police searched Chen’s residence and arrested him in August last year.

He was dismissed from service in November last year and formally indicted last month on charges including contravening the National Security Act (國家安全法) and the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例).

While serving as an active-duty service member responsible for national defense, Chen acted out of personal gain by filming videos pledging allegiance to China, and repeatedly leaking sensitive military and national security information, prosecutors said.

His actions seriously endangered national security and military discipline, they said, urging the court to impose a heavy sentence as a warning.


title: China widens attack on Japan’s ‘nuclear threat’

content_text:
SELF-DEFENSE:  Tokyo has accelerated its spending goal and its defense minister said the nation needs to discuss whether it should develop nuclear-powered submarines

China is ramping up objections to what it sees as Japan’s desire to acquire nuclear weapons, despite Tokyo’s longstanding renunciation of such arms, deepening another fissure in the two neighbors’ increasingly tense ties.

In what appears to be a concerted effort, China’s foreign and defense ministries issued statements on Thursday condemning alleged remilitarism efforts by Tokyo.

The remarks came as two of the country’s top think tanks jointly issued a 29-page report framing actions by “right-wing forces” in Japan as posing a “serious threat” to world peace.

Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Toshimitsu Motegi speaks during the 28th ASEAN Plus Three Summit in Kuala Lumpur on Oct. 27 last year. Photo: Reuters

While that report did not define “right-wing forces,” the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs was more explicit.

Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning (毛寧) said Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and other senior officials had revealed their ambitions by seeking to revise the three non-nuclear principles, discussing the potential introduction of nuclear-powered submarines and calling for boosting “extended deterrence.”

“Such moves of the Japanese side form a grave challenge to the international nuclear non-proliferation regime based on the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the postwar international order, and have been met with strong opposition from the international community and people from various sectors within Japan,” Mao said.

Asked about China’s claims regarding Japan’s nuclear ambitions, Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Toshimitsu Motegi said: “I’d like to state that there is absolutely no truth to such claims.”

The three nonnuclear principles refers to Japan’s long-standing commitment to not possess, produce or permit the entry of nuclear weapons.

Takaichi has said her government abides by the principles, but has not been clear on whether that commitment would remain unchanged as the government seeks to overhaul its national defense strategy.

Amid growing concerns about Beijing’s own military buildup, and the possibility that China would attack Taiwan, Japan in 2022 launched a five-year, ￥43 trillion (US$272.84 billion) defense buildup aiming to roughly double defense spending to 2 percent of GDP.

Takaichi has accelerated that spending goal to the 2025 fiscal year, while Japanese Minister of Defense Shinjiro Koizumi has reportedly said the nation needs to discuss whether to develop nuclear-powered submarines.

Ties between Asia’s top economies deteriorated late last year after Takaichi remarked that if military force were used in a Taiwan conflict, it could be a “survival-threatening situation” for her nation. That classification would provide a legal justification for Japan to deploy its military to help defend friendly nations.

The Chinese Ministry of National Defense accused Japan of “brazenly exporting lethal weaponry” and going against international sentiment by advocating for the possession of nuclear weapons.

Japanese leaders have consistently said the country would not seek atomic weapons.

Still, Itsunori Onodera, the ruling party’s head of research on security, has said his nation should not shy away from discussing nuclear arms, after it was reported another lawmaker expressed a personal opinion in favor of such weaponry.

Even as Beijing stepped up its criticism, an opinion survey published yesterday found that China’s military is the biggest security concern for Japanese people.

More than 68 percent of respondents picked China as a concern, placing it ahead of North Korea for the first time since 2015.

The survey of views on defense issues was carried out in November and December last year. A record 45 percent of respondents said the armed forces should be bolstered, but they were not asked whether Japan should acquire nuclear weapons.


title: Moscow uses new ‘Oreshnik’ ballistic missiles on Ukraine

content_text:
Russia bombarded Ukraine with hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles in a large-scale overnight attack, which killed at least four people, officials said yesterday. For only the second time, Moscow used a new ballistic missile that it says flies at 10 times the speed of sound and is unstoppable.

The intense barrage and the launching of the nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile came days after Ukraine and its allies reported major progress toward agreeing how to defend the country from further Moscow aggression if a peace deal is struck to end Russia’s almost four-year-old invasion.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he has made significant progress on the terms of a possible peace settlement in talks with Washington envoys, but Moscow has given no public signal it is willing to budge from its demands.

A firefighter works at the site of an apartment building in Kyiv hit by a Russian drone strike yesterday. Photo: Reuters

The attack also coincides with a new chill in relations between Moscow and Washington after Russia condemned the US seizure of an oil tanker in the North Atlantic. It comes as US President Donald Trump has signaled he is on board with a hard-hitting sanctions package meant to economically cripple Moscow.

Ukrainian officials said four people were killed and at least 25 wounded in Kyiv during the overnight attack, as apartment buildings were struck.

Those killed included an emergency medical aid worker, Kyiv City Military Administration head Tymur Tkachenko said.

Four doctors and one police officer sustained injuries while responding to the ongoing attacks, authorities said.

About half of Kyiv’s apartment buildings — nearly 6,000 — were left without heating, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.

The water supply was also disrupted.

Municipal services restored power and heating to public facilities, including hospitals and maternity wards, using mobile boiler units, he added.

The Russian Ministry of Defense said the attack was a retaliation to what Moscow said was a Ukrainian drone strike on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s residence last month. Ukraine and US President Donald Trump have rejected the Russian claim of the attack on Putin’s residence.

Putin has previously said that the Oreshnik streaks to its target at Mach 10, “like a meteorite,” and has claimed it is immune to any missile defense system, adding that several of them used in a conventional strike could be as devastating as a nuclear attack.

Ukrainian intelligence said the missile has six warheads, each carrying six submunitions.

Moscow did not say where the Oreshnik hit, but Russian media and military bloggers said it targeted a huge underground natural gas storage facility in Ukraine’s western Lviv region.

Western military aid flows to Ukraine from a big supply hub in Poland just across the border from Lviv.


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‘WASTE OF TIME’:  The Executive Yuan criticized the blocking as an unnecessary drain on the public’s time, as it hinders government measures and development

Opposition parties yesterday again blocked a special budget aimed at bolstering the nation’s overall defense posture and the general budget for this year because of what they said was the government’s failure to prepare a budget in accordance with the law.

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus had placed a motion on the agenda for yesterday’s legislative session that would have sent the budget proposals to committee for review, but it was voted down 59-50 by lawmakers from the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP).

The vote came after Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) warned that failure to pass the NT$3.03 trillion (US$95.9 billion) general budget could keep the central government from accessing NT$299.2 billion in funds, including for defense and local government allocations.

Legislators hold up placards stating their respective stances during a vote at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday. Photo: CNA

Those funds would be earmarked for new initiatives (NT$101.7 billion), expenses and continuing programs (NT$180.5 billion), the First and Second Reserve Funds, and the Disaster Reserve Fund (NT$17 billion).

The government would still be able to draw on other funds for such payments as civil servant salaries and statutory social welfare payments under a “provisional budget” mechanism based on the previous year’s approved budget.

KMT caucus secretary-general Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強) said after the vote that his caucus hopes President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration would first compile the budget in accordance with the law.

Lo urged the Lai administration to fully allocate funds for military pay raises as well as for pension increases for retired police officers and firefighters, in line with bills passed by the opposition parties last year.

The Cabinet has declined to earmark funds for the raises and has sought constitutional interpretations of the bills, which are still pending.

Lawmakers from the two opposition parties also blocked a proposed NT$1.25 trillion special defense budget unveiled by Lai on Nov. 26 last year. It was the sixth time opposition lawmakers had voted against the special budget.

The opposition has demanded that Lai brief the legislature on the special budget and respond to lawmakers’ questions before any review of the spending plan begins.

The TPP also criticized the proposal, saying that amid delays in the delivery of US-ordered weapons, it is unreasonable to expect opposition backing for what it described as an “opaque” defense spending plan that does not clearly specify funded items.

The Executive Yuan yesterday criticized the latest blocking as “a waste of precious time” for national defense and an unnecessary drain on the public’s time, saying it hinders the government’s ability to care for the public, develop local infrastructure and advance artificial intelligence technology.

Executive Yuan spokeswoman Michelle Lee (李慧芝) called on all affected local governments nationwide to urge their district legislators to set aside unnecessary political calculations, and conduct substantive reviews of the general budget and the special national defense budget so that local development could be more balanced, national defense capabilities further strengthened and overall national progress advanced.

Additional reporting by Chung Li-hua

people: 賴清德 卓榮泰 羅智強

title: KMT, TPP again block review of budget bills


title: KMT offers legal assistance to challenge pension cut

people: 吳宗憲 卓榮泰 賴清德

content_text:
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday promised to provide legal assistance to retired police officers and firefighters affected by the government’s refusal to budget pension increases mandated by a bill passed by the legislature and signed by President William Lai (賴清德).

The KMT and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), which together hold a majority in the legislature, pushed through the Police Personnel Management Act (警察人員人事條例) in January last year to raise income replacement ratios for police officers and firefighters. The act was signed into law by Lai in late April last year.

Citing constitutional concerns over legislative measures that increase government spending, the Cabinet has refused to implement the increases, and petitioned the Constitutional Court for a provisional injunction and a constitutional interpretation, both of which are pending.

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Wu Tsung-hsien, center, speaks at a news confernce at party headquarters in Taipei yesterday. Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times

KMT Legislator Wu Tsung-hsien (吳宗憲) yesterday urged retirees who have received notices from the Ministry of Civil Service confirming their updated income replacement ratios to request a review of their cases.

Lawyers who regularly work with the party are willing to represent affected retirees and the party would cover any legal fees, he said.

The KMT would also file a lawsuit demanding that the Cabinet allocate funding for the pension increases, he added.

“This is a matter of justice. When a country’s leaders lack a sense of justice, that is when we must step forward,” he said.

The KMT’s move echoed a similar announcement made by the TPP earlier this week.

Under the laws, civil servants have 30 days to request a review by the Civil Service Protection and Training Commission if they believe they have been treated unfairly.

The KMT and the TPP have cited the Cabinet’s failure to earmark funds for the pension increases in this year’s general budget as one of the main reasons for blocking legislative review of the budget proposal.

In September last year, a coalition of retired police officers’ associations filed a lawsuit against Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰), accusing him of malfeasance over the Cabinet’s refusal to earmark funds for the pension increases.

Cabinet spokeswoman Michelle Lee (李慧芝) at the time said that if the Constitutional Court rules the amendments constitutional, the government would immediately make adjustments and retroactively make up any unpaid amounts, ensuring that police officers’ rights are not affected.


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DEMOCRATIC PARTNERS: Italian politicians from across the political divide attended the meeting, where they affirmed the importance of Taiwanese investment in Italy

Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) on Thursday met a cross-party delegation of the Taiwan-Italy Parliamentary Friendship Group led by its cochair, Italian Deputy Member Alessandro Cattaneo.

The delegation’s seven lawmakers are visiting Taiwan for the first time, and their meeting marked the third interaction Lin had with Italian leaders, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement yesterday.

In September last year, Lin received a delegation led by the group’s cochair, Italian Senator Adriano Paroli. One month later, he attended a function at Taiwan’s representative office in Rome, where he met Italian Senate Vice President Gian Marco Centinaio, among 16 lawmakers.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung, center, poses for photographs with Japanese Councilor Hei Seki, second left, in Taipei on Thursday. Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Italy is an ancient bastion of culture and a destination for many Taiwanese young people studying design, fashion and art, Lin was cited as saying at Thursday’s meeting.

Bilateral economic exchanges have blossomed, with semiconductor giant GlobalWafers opening a 12-inch wafer fab in Italy’s Novara last year, which serves to provide Europe with a resident supply chain for chips, he said.

Cattaneo affirmed the importance of Taiwan’s investment in the Italian semiconductor sector and emphasized that Italian lawmakers from across the political divide are joined in their appreciation of Taiwan’s democracy, and the importance of peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

title: Foreign minister meets Italian delegation


title: Search expands for missing pilot of crashed F-16V jet

taiwan-subdivisions: 成功 卑南 長濱 豐濱

content_text:
The military has expanded the scope of its search-and-rescue operation for the missing pilot of an F-16V jet, deploying sea, air and ground forces around the clock, but had made no further progress as of noon yesterday.

Army units stationed in Taitung County broadened their coastal search area during the day, covering the shoreline from Changbin Township (長濱) to the mouth of the Beinan River (卑南溪) in Taitung City, as part of ongoing efforts to locate the missing pilot, air force Captain Hsin Po-yi (辛柏毅), the army said.

The F-16V piloted by Hsin went missing off the coast of Hualien County during a nighttime training mission on Tuesday evening.

Waves bound against a Coast Guard Administration vessle searching for missing air force Captain Hsin Po-yi off the coast of Hualien County yesterday. Photo courtesy of the Coast Guard Administration

From Thursday night through early yesterday morning, Black Hawk helicopters conducted low-altitude search flights over waters off Taitung and Hualien, while Coast Guard Administration vessels maintained round-the-clock search-and-rescue operations.

As of 9am yesterday, four vessels and 16 boat sorties had been dispatched, along with 132 vehicles and 296 personnel for shore operations, the coast guard said.

Coast guard vessels are continuing to search the area in coordination with the military and other rescue units, it said, adding that sea conditions at the site include Beaufort force 6 to 7 winds, gusts up to force 9, and waves about 3m high.

The army’s Taitung Area Command said that about 40 personnel are deployed daily for coastal search operations.

The search initially focused on coastal areas and waters off Fengbin (豐濱), the command said, adding that strong winds, high waves and southward-moving currents prompted authorities to extend the search on Thursday to the coastlines of Changbin and Chenggong (成功) townships, and further southward to the mouth of the Beinan River.


content_text:
The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office yesterday indicted Internet influencer Holger Chen (陳之漢) for allegedly calling for the decapitation of President William Lai (賴清德) during a live stream in October last year.

While Chen was commenting on Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) “decapitation strike” exercises around Taiwan, he allegedly segued into a specific threat to cut off Lai’s head, prosecutors said.

“Decapitate Lai Ching-te’s dog head,” he said, according to prosecutors. “Bro, I am waiting for you... I have waited for it day and night.”

Internet personality Holger Chen, center, speaks to reporters in Taipei on Oct. 7 last year. Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times

After a three-month investigation, prosecutors charged Chen with contraventions of the Criminal Code for “threatening to cause injury to the life, body, freedom, reputation, or property of another, thereby endangers the person’s safety” and “endangering public safety.”

Chen was released on NT$150,000 bail after being questioned by prosecutors in October last year.

Chen at the time defended himself, saying that he meant no offense, and that he was responding to audience questions about current events.

“A military ‘decapitation’ operation is clearly not the same as calling to ‘behead’ the nation’s president,” prosecutors said.

Chen expressed support for a PLA military attack against Taiwan, picking up the term “decapitation operation” from news reports, which he distorted into “beheading” Lai, which is a concrete threat of criminal violence, prosecutors said, adding that it exceeded the bounds of acceptable free speech.

Chen’s remarks were sufficient to instill fear in any ordinary person, regardless of whether they are the president, they said.

Additional reporting by CNA

title: Holger Chen indicted over threat to ‘behead’ president


content_text:
INVERTED PYRAMID:  New US guidelines prioritizing red meat, whole milk and animal-based fats have sparked debate, with a local expert advising Taiwan to follow its own

The release of the newest national dietary guidelines could be postponed to the second quarter following the dramatic shift in the US’ dietary guidelines emphasizing protein and healthy fats, Minister of Health and Welfare Shih Chung-liang (石崇良) said yesterday.

International dietary recommendations certainly would change with the development of nutrition science, he said.

Although Taiwan’s updated dietary guidelines were slated to be released this quarter, more changes could be made based on the latest US dietary guidelines and recent studies, Shih said, adding that the finalized version could be published as late as the second quarter.

Posters of food and beverages line the seats ahead of a policy announcement event at the US Department of Health and Human Services in Washington on Thursday. Photo: AFP

US President Donald Trump’s administration on Wednesday unveiled the newest US dietary guidelines showing an inverted pyramid prioritizing red meat, whole milk and animal-based fats such as beef tallow and butter — which it called “protein, dairy and healthy fats” — at the top, in line with vegetables and fruits, while whole grains make up the smallest portion at the bottom of the pyramid.

The latest US guidelines, which are updated every five years, markedly increased the amount of recommended daily protein intake from 0.8g to up to 1.6g per kilogram of body weight for adults.

That means an adult weighing 68kg is advised to take in 82g to 109g of protein per day, instead of 54g.

The new US guidelines also specified that beef tallow and butter — despite being mostly saturated fats — are good options for cooking oils such as olive oil, prompting debates in the nutrition science community.

The change was led by US Secretary of Health Robert Kennedy Jr, who reportedly had delayed releasing revisions to the guidelines for months as they were proposed by a scientific advisory committee under former US president Joe Biden with a focus on plant-based diets.

New York University nutrition professor Marion Nestle said the latest US dietary guidelines recommend “heavily meat-based diets” and protein has become “a euphemism for meat,” the news outlet Live Science reported.

Shih said recent studies showed that many food ingredients originally considered “unhealthy” are actually good nutritional sources when consumed in moderation, such as egg yolks or whole milk.

The point is “moderate consumption” instead of completely excluding such ingredients, he said.

The draft of Taiwan’s new dietary guidelines was completed last year, the Health Promotion Administration said.

Meetings with experts would be held to review the US’ and other international dietary guidelines and evaluate the dietary habits of Taiwanese and special needs of different demographic groups, it said.

Taiwan Dietitian Association deputy president Huang Tsui-hua (黃翠華) said the US dietary guidelines are “recommendations for Americans,” and Taiwan should have its own version based on its dietary needs.

The US guidelines send mixed messages by discouraging processed foods and added sugars while promoting red meat and full-fat dairy products, she said, adding that most research showed that excessive intake of red meat and processed meat would raise the risk of colorectal cancer.

Another drastic change to the new guidelines was the removal of alcohol intake limits of up to two drinks for men and up to one drink for women.

Instead, the new guidelines simply state that people are advised to “consume less alcohol for better overall health.”

About 47 percent of Taiwanese have poor alcohol metabolism and therefore higher risk of cancer with prolonged acetaldehyde exposure, Liver Disease Prevention and Treatment Research Foundation chief executive officer Nien Hsiao-ching (粘曉菁) said, calling on Taiwanese to drink as little alcohol as possible.

The harmful effects of alcohol cannot be measured simply by average daily consumption, as binge drinking or relying on liquor to fall asleep or relieve pressure are much more harmful to health, Mackay Memorial Hospital psychiatrist Fang Chun-kai (方俊凱) said.

Regarding gender and age, Fang said women could develop more harmful effects from alcohol faster than men, as their blood alcohol levels tend to be higher from consuming the same amount of alcohol.

Children and teenagers should refrain from drinking alcohol, as it could affect neurological development, he added.

Fang also suggested that Taiwan follow the example of Japan instead of the US, as Japan’s alcohol consumption guidelines published in 2024 measure consumption by “daily pure-alcohol intake limits” and stress that drinking less than the threshold does not guarantee safety.

title: New dietary guidelines delayed: minister


content_text:
Many young Taiwanese are not unwilling to have children, but tend to be more cautious as they evaluate practical conditions before getting married and having kids, a counseling psychologist said.

The latest Ministry of the Interior statistics showed the number of newborns plunging to a historical low of 98,785 in the first 11 months of last year.

New Taipei City Counseling Psychologist Association president Lo Hui-chun (羅惠群) said that rather than saying young people “do not want to have children,” it is more like “they are thinking more comprehensively.”

A woman pushes two childen in a tandem stroller in Kaohsiung on Monday. Photo: CNA

Based on his clinical observation of many people of marriageable years, Lo said many of them conduct long-term, comprehensive evaluations — including couple relationships, personal conditions and future lifestyles — before deciding whether to get married or have children.

Many young people who come to him for pre-marital counseling more often discuss practical conditions rather than romantic issues, such as “where they would live” or “if they are capable of raising children,” he said.

Conditions including whether they already own a property or would need to rent or buy a house, nearly always come up in their discussions before getting married, Lo said, adding that concerns about housing instability directly affect people’s sense of security in deciding to get married or have children.

Regarding the phenomenon of late marriage and delayed childbearing, he said if couples do not plan to have children, late marriage is not an issue, but if they agree to have children, age becomes a reality they cannot ignore.

The prime marriage age is around 32 or 33 years old, but many couples do not want to get married and have children when they have just dated for a short period, while those who get married want to ensure they have a stable relationship before having children, he said.

Entering the parenting stage when the foundation of a marriage relationship is not solid enough often leads to increased risks of marital conflicts and separation, he added.

“Whether to have children or not” has become an important threshold for deciding to get married or not, Lo said.

If two people have different views on having children, then marriage might not be a possibility, so most couples start making childbearing plans before marriage or in the early stages of marriage, he said.

Many young people tend to avoid making significant commitments when conditions are uncertain, unlike the previous generation’s attitude that “I will have children because everyone is having them,” he said.

The real-life struggle is that many young people’s working conditions and asset accumulation cannot keep up with the ideal lifestyle they have in mind, Lo said.

If they do not find support from their family, they might continue to delay marriage and childbearing decisions, or just avoid the issue altogether, he said.

The difficulties and stress of taking care of children are challenges “after the child is born,” so what really affects the nation’s birthrate is whether a couple dares to make the decision in the first place, he added.

Lo said the change in making such decisions is not necessarily a bad thing, as it reflects people increasingly valuing their autonomy and quality of life.

In his counseling sessions, Lo said he helps couples make an inventory of their career, income and living conditions for the next three to five years, aiding those “who have an opportunity and the conditions” to get married, but are still hesitant about making a decision.

Social media often exaggerate the image of a “perfect life,” causing excessive stress on young people, he said.

What young people need is to get back to reality and engage in full conversations with their partner, family and professionals if they have trouble making decisions, he said.

title: Childbirth a hard decision for many: expert


title: Farmers advised to step up protection of crops from cold

content_text:
The Agriculture and Food Agency yesterday called on farmers to enhance measures to protect crops as the effects of a cold air mass and radiative cooling continued to affect the nation.

Farmers are advised to refrain from planting rice seedlings during the cold surge and set up cold barriers around rice seedling nurseries, it said.

Non-woven or plastic cloth can be used to shield growing seedlings from cold, but water pooling on the cloth must be promptly removed to prevent frost damage, it said.

A Central Weather Administration chart shows the weather forecast for the next week. The red line indicates Taipei, the yellow line indicates Taichung, the blue line represents Tainan and the green line represents Hualien. Photo courtesy of the Central Weather Administration

For coarse grain crops, filling furrows with water aside from covering the crops with plastic cloth or rice straw can maintain a relatively warm temperature, the agency said.

Tea plants could be affected by cold temperatures although most of them have entered winter dormancy, it said, adding that cold protection techniques like anti-frost fans are recommended to reduce cold damage.

Vegetables or melons that are less resistant to cold weather should be covered with nonwoven cloth or rice straws, or surrounded with windbreaks or plastic fabric, it said.

Vegetables that are mature enough can be harvested early to minimize economic losses, it added.

Flowers can be protected from cold via furrow irrigation or plastic covers as well as plastic greenhouses, while potassium-rich fertilizers can be used to increase their cold-resistance, it said.

Fruit bagging and tree trunk wrapping are recommended to protect fruit trees against cold, while potassium-rich fertilizers can be applied to fruit trees during flowering periods, the agency said.

Fruits at their maturity stage, especially wax apples, citrus fruits, sugar apples, jujubes and papayas, should be promptly harvested, it said.

Pear tree buds that were recently grafted are more prone to cold injuries and should be wrapped in plastic bags after they are grafted or pollinated to protect them against chilly winds, it said.

Fruit trees damaged by cold temperatures must be trimmed to remove the affected branches and leaves, it added.

Agricultural workers can take photos of their damaged crops to apply for relief funds from local town or township offices, the agency said.

The submitted claims must contain dates the photographs were taken, damage conditions, and location information, such as adjacent fields, background features or satellite positioning data, it added.

The Ministry of Agriculture has developed an Agricultural Natural Disaster On-site Photograph app, which can identify users’ location and photograph agricultural losses for uploading to the ministry’s database, the agency added.

Uploaded photos of fields that local township offices assess to have suffered agricultural losses of 20 percent or more can be approved for relief payments without additional on-site inspection, it said.

According to the Central Weather Administration, cold conditions persisted across the nation yesterday, with temperatures falling below 6oC in parts of Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan and Hsinchu County, the agency said.

In most other regions, temperatures briefly dipped below 10oC, except in Taitung, Pingtung, and the offshore counties of Penghu and Lienchiang (Matsu), it added.

Independent meteorologist Daniel Wu (吳德榮) said another cold wave would keep chilly conditions in place over the weekend.

From Monday morning through Thursday, sunny skies would prevail during the daytime as the cold air gradually weakens, he said.

However, he warned of large daytime-nighttime temperature swings, as enhanced radiative cooling, a process in which heat escapes from the ground into the atmosphere, could lead to low temperatures at night and in the early morning.

Additional reporting by CNA


content_text:
By Tsai Tsung-hsien and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writer

A research team led by National Museum of Marine Biology and Aquarium assistant researcher Leu Ming-yih (呂明毅) has provided the first comprehensive account of natural spawning of Chaetodontoplus meridithii, or Queensland yellowtail angelfish, in an artificial environment.

The study was published in the international journal Aquaculture Reports last month.

C meridithii is a marine ornamental species endemic to subtropical waters in Australia’s Queensland area. Its vibrant colors and graceful movements make it a popular choice among aquarium hobbyists.

Queensland yellowtail angelfish are pictured in an undated photograph. Photo: Tsai Tsung-hsien, Taipei Times

Because technology has been unsuccessful in artificially reproducing the species, most of the Queensland yellowtail angelfish on the market are brought in from the wild and command a steep price of US$500 (NT$15,798) each.

About 2 million of the species are captured in the wild per year for sale in the ornamental fish market, placing signicant stress on the ecology of local coral reefs, the museum said.

Queensland yellowtail angelfish are “not easy to handle,” as they are very territorial and would often refuse to mate, museum Director Wen Chih-hung (溫志宏) said.

The species is also highly selective in its spawning environment, and it was challenging to provide a stable supply of natural feed for the fry, he said.

The team observed a captive adult pair from August 2018 to September 2019 that exhibited year-round spawning, producing 161 spawns over 426 days, the study said.

They observed that rising water temperatures tended to increase spawning frequency, whereas salinity and lunar phases showed no significant correlations, it said.

“Water quality conditions that resulted in the highest hatch rate and survival activity indices (SAI) were determined to be a salinity of 33 psu [practical salinity unit] and a temperature of 27°C,” it said.

The latest findings “expand understanding of Queensland yellowtail angelfish reproduction, supporting captive breeding, larval rearing, sustainable aquaculture and efforts to mitigate overfishing from the marine ornamental trade,” it added.

title: Taiwan reports captive breeding of C meridithii


content_text:
VULNERABLE SPECIES:  As the relict gull is not a regular migrant to Taiwan, it might be the same bird sighted in Changhua last year, birdwatchers said

A relict gull has been spotted in Tainan for the first time, in only the fifth recorded sighting of the vulnerable Central Asian species in Taiwan, the Wild Bird Society of Tainan said.

Local birdwatcher Lin Kun-hui (林坤慧) spotted the gull on Wednesday after noticing it stood out among other birds at a salt pan in Tainan’s Jiangjun District (將軍). The species was later confirmed through photographs, the society said.

Relict gulls typically inhabit salt lakes in Central Asia, making their appearance in Taiwan an unusual case of vagrancy far outside their normal range, the society said.

A relict gull is pictured in Tainan’s Jiangjun District in an undated photograph. Photo courtesy of Lin Kun-hui

The species is classified as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, meaning it faces a high risk of extinction in the wild.

The most recent previous sighting in Taiwan occurred in Changhua County last year.

As the gull is not a regular migrant to Taiwan, the society said it might be the same bird spotted last year, possibly moving south to escape cold surges.

Earlier sightings were recorded in Kinmen County in 2013, Yilan County in 2016 and Pingtung County in 2024, it said.

title: Rare Central Asian gull spotted for the first time in Tainan


content_text:
By Wu Pai-hsuan and Fion Khan / Staff reporter, with staff writer

Virtual YouTubers, or VTubers, have proliferated in Taiwan in the past few years, with their growing influence now extending into various sectors, experts said.

VTubers are YouTubers who stream using virtual avatars, typically anime-style characters, as their “skin,” with motion capture technology tracking real facial expressions for performances, complemented by live voice acting.

Avatars are not limited to human forms, and Kizuna AI, who started in 2016 in Japan, is widely regarded as the pioneer.

A VTuber is pictured in a collaboration between the Ministry of Finance and the Springfish Co promoting tax filing information. Photo courtesy of Chen Shan-ching

Beyond subculture circles, VTubers have also gained popularity among digital-native younger generations. They have recently become powerful cross-sector intermediaries, endorsing local art venues and partnering with sports organizations to promote the Olympics and national teams.

Public awareness of VTubers in Taiwan has risen sharply over the past three years, expanding beyond niche communities, said Wang Wei-chih (王威智), an assistant professor at National Tsing Hua University’s Institute of Taiwan Literature.

VTubers combine the recognizability of anime characters, the real-time interaction of livestreamers and the emotional attachment associated with idols, he said.

Unconstrained by physical bodies or real-world settings, virtual characters serve as the most effective cross-domain mediators in the media ecosystem, he said.

As technological barriers lower, “corporate-owned VTubers” could become standard for brands managing digital communities, he said.

Citing the collaboration between Juufuutei Raden, a member of the renowned Japanese agency Hololive, and the Tainan Art Museum as an example, he said it helped draw young digital natives into traditional arts spaces.

He also described the agency’s partnership with the Los Angeles Dodgers as a form of “cultural diplomacy.”

The core value of future idols would shift from physical presence to sustainability and deeper emotional connections, he said.

Issues such as digital life ethics, local practice, virtual tourism and community revitalization warrant further research, he said.

Chen Shan-ching (陳善清), head of Taiwanese VTuber agency Springfish Co (春魚創意), said the company is open to supporting cross-sector applications for its talent.

During the Paris Olympics, the company collaborated with the Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee to serve as virtual ambassadors, hosting livestreams and explaining sporting information, he said.

The agency has also worked with Chunghwa Post to promote mobile apps and stamp-collecting activities, and has entered the education sector by partnering with Nan I Book (南一書局) to create VTubers and virtual classrooms, he said.

“Our strength is being the medium best suited to communicating with young people,” he said.

Citing PLAVE, South Korea’s first virtual boy band, performing alongside rapper Lee Young-ji at last year’s MAMA Awards, and Netflix’s K-pop-themed animated movie KPop Demon Hunters as examples, he said virtual idols are able to cross into mainstream pop culture.

However, as the “novelty effect” begins to wane, the industry has to focus more on cost-efficiency and conversion rates, he said.

Taiwanese comic book artist Wei Zhong-cheng (韋宗成) said a polished VTuber appearance serves as an entry ticket to attract attention.

However, some designs attempt to cram in too many elements, diluting visual impact, he said, suggesting prioritizing strong visual identity.

Taiwanese VTubers benefit from localized language use, approachability and adept use of Internet memes, he added.

Many energetic independent creators can rival corporate-backed ones in viewership, but limited funding results in fewer large-scale projects and gaps in motion-capture technology, he said.

Cheng Chao-i (鄭朝益), social media marketing planner at Pili International Multimedia’s budaixi (霹靂布袋戲), said traditional glove puppetry could also be seen as a form of “virtual idol.”

Traditional glove puppetry shares similarities with VTubers in that both rely on human operators to imbue characters with life, and provide audiences with emotional attachment and companionship, he said.

Taiwan’s VTuber scene has flourished in recent years, with projects, programs and individual intellectual property management becoming increasingly mature, he said.

Although the number of corporate-backed VTubers remains limited, the market has significant room for growth, he said, urging creators to experiment boldly, identify distinctive niches and develop sustainable paths forward.

title: VTubers’ influence expanding across sectors


title: Bear back riding

content_text: Handheld lanterns to be distributed at the Taiwan Lantern Festival in Chiayi County are pictured at a news conference in Taipei yesterday. The lanterns’ design features tourism mascot “Oh Bear” riding a horse, symbolizing the upcoming Year of the Horse.


title: Horsing around

content_text: Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu, center left, gifts former Taiwan People’s Party chairman Ko Wen-je, center right, a Lunar New Year couplet during the latter’s visit to the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday. The couplet, reading “Ma Shang Xing Fu,” or “ Soon to be happy,” is a play on the word “horse” ahead of the Year of the Horse.


title: Street art

content_text: Tourists look at graffiti on the walls of the graffiti street in Taipei’s Ximending District yesterday.


content_text:
PRECEDENTED TIMES: In news that surely does not shock, AI and tech exports drove a banner for exports last year as Taiwan’s economic growth experienced a flood tide

Taiwan’s exports delivered a blockbuster finish to last year with last month’s shipments rising at the

second-highest pace on record as demand for artificial intelligence (AI) hardware and advanced computing remained strong, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday.

Exports surged 43.4 percent from a year earlier to US$62.48 billion last month, extending growth to 26 consecutive months. Imports climbed 14.9 percent to US$43.04 billion, the second-highest monthly level historically, resulting in a trade surplus of US$19.43 billion — more than double that of the year before.

Department of Statistics Director-General Beatrice Tsai (蔡美娜) described the performance as “surprisingly outstanding,” forecasting export growth of 50 percent to 56 percent for this month, reflecting a low base due to the timing of the Lunar New Year.

“The AI opportunity shows no sign of fading and instead appears to be gaining momentum,” Tsai told an online news conference. “Industry players are overwhelmingly bullish on the outlook, and Taiwan has the technological capabilities and industrial depth to capture a significant share of the growth.”

Technology products were the main driver of last month’s outperformance. Exports of information and communications technology and audiovisual products more than doubled from a year earlier, while shipments of electronic components rose 24.1 percent.

Together, the two categories accounted for over two-thirds of the month’s export growth, underscoring Taiwan’s pivotal role in supplying chips, servers and related hardware to global datacenter operators.

Machinery exports increased 11 percent, buoyed by demand for semiconductor manufacturing equipment, while plastics and rubber products fell 13.1 percent amid weak market conditions and rising overseas capacity, Tsai said, adding that uneven sectoral growth is likely to persist this year.

During the fourth quarter, exports jumped 49.4 percent year-on-year, beating the government’s forecast by 17.8 percentage points and reinforcing the case for an upward revision to full-year GDP growth from the 7.37 percent projected in November last year, Tsai said.

For all of last year, exports soared 34.9 percent to a record US$640.75 billion, generating an unprecedented trade surplus of US$157.14 billion. The US overtook China to become Taiwan’s largest export destination, while shipments to ASEAN climbed 35.6 percent to more than US$100 billion, positioning the bloc as Taiwan’s second-largest market.

Taiwan’s export expansion has accelerated rapidly in recent years. After taking decades to climb from US$100 billion to US$400 billion, shipments leaped from US$400 billion to US$600 billion in just four years — an achievement unmatched among Asia’s four newly industrialized economies, Tsai said.

Last year’s export growth was the strongest in close to 15 years, far outpacing major economies, she said.

title: Export growth sees very strong year


title: TSMC’s revenue comes in at high end of predictions

companies: 台積電 Apple

content_text:
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), which supplies advanced chips to Nvidia Corp and Apple Inc, yesterday reported NT$1.046 trillion (US$33.1 billion) in revenue for last quarter, driven by constantly strong demand for artificial intelligence (AI) chips, falling in the upper end of its forecast.

Based on TSMC’s financial guidance, revenue would expand about 22 percent sequentially to the range from US$32.2 billion to US$33.4 billion during the final quarter of 2024, it told investors in October last year.

Last year in total, revenue jumped 31.61 percent to NT$3.81 trillion, compared with NT$2.89 trillion generated in the year before, according to a TSMC statement.

The Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited logo is displayed outside its fabrication plant in Hsinchu in 2025. Photo: EPA

Annual revenue slightly surpassed an estimate of NT$3.78 trillion made by Goldman Sachs Research on Sunday, but largely matched KGI Securities Investment Advisory Co’s (凱基投顧)

expectations of NT$3.81 trillion.

The chipmaker in October last year said that revenue growth would be supported by faster-than-expected demand for AI accelerators, which would grow at rates greater than 45 percent for the 2024 to 2029 period that it estimated in July. That would fuel demand for its leading-edge technologies such as 3-nanometer technology, it said

“Everything related [to AI], like front-end and back-end capacity, is very tight,” TSMC chairman and CEO C.C. Wei (魏哲家) told investors,

adding that the company is working hard to increase capacity to catch up with customers’ demand.

To cope with strong AI chip demand, TSMC plans to speed up its 2-nanometer chip production in Taiwan and to quicken its chip manufacturing technology upgrade at its fabs in Arizona, it said. The chipmaker planned to produce 3-nanometer or even more advanced chips such as 2-nanometer chips from its second fab in Arizona.

TSMC is scheduled to release detailed financial figures of last quarter and last year as well as to give its business outlook for this year during a quarterly conference scheduled for Thursday next week.

KGI expected the chipmaker to make NT$475.89 billion net profit last quarter, higher than the consensus of NT$454.67 billion, according to a KGI report released on Monday. That represents quarterly growth of 5.22 percent from NT$452.3 billion based on KGI’s forecast, rather than a flat quarter as most analysts expected.

Gross margin was expected to reach 61.5 percent in the fourth quarter of last year, exceeding TSMC’s guidance of between 59 percent and 61 percent, the KGI report said.

For all of last year, TSMC is expected to report another record-breaking net profit of NT$1.69 trillion or NT$1.68 trillion as projected by KGI and Goldman Sachs Research, soaring about 44 percent from NT$1.17 trillion reported for 2024.

Earnings per share would rise NT$64.7 to NT$65.1, up from NT$45.25 in 2024.


content_text:
Cloud computing equipment supplier Wiwynn Corp (緯穎科技) on Thursday reported a 95.7 percent year-on-year surge in net profit last quarter to NT$13.79 billion (US$436.46 million), a record high for the period, driven by strong customer demand for artificial intelligence (AI) servers and data center equipment.

Earnings per share rose to NT$74.21, nearly doubling from NT$37.92 a year earlier and the second-highest quarterly figure in the company’s history, Wiwynn said in a statement.

Gross margin dropped to 7.2 percent last quarter from 9.4 percent a year earlier due to a different product mix, the company said.

Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an, third left, Wiwynn Corp chairwoman Emily Hong, and other guests attend a groundbreaking ceremony in Taipei last year. Photo: CNA

Quarterly revenue surged 152.9 percent year-on-year to a record high of NT$292.44 billion last quarter, with more than half of the revenue coming from AI-related products, a Wiwynn official said in an interview.

Wiwynn has long order visibility through next year, the official said.

Last year, Wiwynn mainly shipped server racks powered by application-specific integrated circuits, but beginning last quarter it started supplying servers using Nvidia Corp’s graphics processing units, it said.

Revenue this quarter is expected to be flat or edge down slightly from the previous quarter due to the off-season effect, the official said.

Meanwhile, Pegatron Corp (和碩), a key assembler of Apple Inc’s iPhones, yesterday reported a 2.29 percent year-on-year decline in revenue at NT$319.52 billion for last quarter, that meant quarterly growth of 23.91 percent driven by the traditional peak season for smartphones with shipments coming in line with the company’s previous guidance, Pegatron said.

Growth momentum came from its server business on higher shipments in the fourth quarter, the company said. Pegatron expected the server segment to post positive growth this year from last year.

Pegatron shipped 2.4 million notebook computers last quarter, unchanged from the previous quarter, while full-year shipments totaled 9 million units, up 12.5 percent year-on-year, the official said.

Inventec Corp (英業達) yesterday reported lower revenue for last quarter, down 10.95 percent year-on-year to NT$64.35 billion.

The company shipped 5.3 million notebook computers during the quarter, down 1 percent year-on-year, due to easing of front-loading demand in the third quarter due to a surge in memory prices, the company said. Last year as a whole, Inventec shipped 21.3 million notebook computers, up 6.5 percent annually.

Notebook computer shipments this quarter are expected to decline by a double-digit percentage quarter-on-quarter, the company said, while server shipments are expected to edge lower this quarter due to seasonality. AI server sales accounted for more than 45 percent of the company’s total server sales last quarter, it said.

Contract notebook manufacturer Compal Electronics Inc (仁寶) said sales fell 16.8 percent annually to NT$190.85 billion last quarter, and it expected revenue this quarter to decline further quarter-

on-quarter due to seasonality.

Compal shipped 6.8 million notebook computers last quarter, down 12.8 percent year-on-year, bringing full-year shipments to 28 million units.

The server business grew by a double-digit percentage sequentially last quarter, driven by AI server demand, while its 5G products recorded growth of a similar magnitude, the company said.

This quarter, growth momentum from its server and 5G products is expected to continue, but notebook shipments are to decline due to seasonal factors, it said.

title: Wiwynn closes out highly profitable year


content_text:
South Korea’s government is more optimistic about the economy’s prospects than the central bank, striking a more upbeat tone as authorities move to further open the nation’s currency and financial markets to global investors.

In its economic growth strategy report for this year, the government forecast the economy would grow 2 percent, more than the Bank of Korea’s 1.8 percent estimate, the South Korean Ministry of Economy and Finance said in a statement Friday.

Consumer prices are predicted to rise 2.1 percent, the same pace as in last year, it added.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, center, rear, speaks during a meeting at the presidential office in Seoul, South Korea, yesterday. Photo: EPA

The brighter outlook is driven by firmer domestic consumption and stronger exports, led by semiconductors, while construction investment is expected to turn positive, First Vice Finance Minister Lee Hyoung-il said.

The government expects a current-account surplus of US$135 billion this year, up from an estimated US$118 billion last year, helped by improving trade terms as chip prices recover and energy costs ease.

Still, policymakers acknowledged longer-term constraints. The strategy warned that South Korea’s potential growth rate could fall toward 1 percent in the 2030s, and near zero in the following decade without structural reforms, underscoring the need to attract capital and boost productivity.

A central pillar for the plan is a sweeping overhaul of foreign-exchange market access.

The government said it would fully extend onshore foreign exchange trading to a 24-hour system from July, replacing the current structure that closes in the early hours of the morning, and improve links with overseas trading hubs and electronic currency platforms.

A roadmap to promote wider use of the won in international payments and offshore financial transactions would be finalized in the first half of the year.

The foreign exchange reforms are part of a broader push to attract foreign investment as South Korea pursues inclusion in global benchmarks such as MSCI Inc’s developed markets index. The government would complete its phased entry into the FTSE World Government Bond Index this year and continue efforts to align market infrastructure with international standards.

As part of those efforts, officials reiterated plans to establish a Korean sovereign wealth fund, with initial capital of about 20 trillion won (US$13.7 billion), drawing on government-held equity stakes and other assets. The fund would operate with independent decision-making and gradually expand its investment footprint, the strategy said.

With regards to financial stability, the government said it would maintain tight oversight of household debt while supporting growth, and is considering the creation of a dedicated real estate supervisory body.

Housing supply would be expanded alongside measures aimed at preventing the buildup of systemic risks tied to property prices and leverage.

The strategy reaffirmed the government’s industrial priorities, with artificial intelligence, semiconductors and advanced manufacturing positioned as key growth engines.

In digital finance, South Korea said it would move to formalize rules for stablecoins, including setting requirements for issuers and reserve assets, while pursuing the introduction of spot exchange-traded funds linked to digital assets, all steps aimed at bringing crypto markets further into the regulatory framework.

title: South Korea looks ahead


title: Rio Tinto and Glencore revive merger discussion

content_text:
Rio Tinto Group is in talks to buy Glencore PLC to create the world’s biggest mining company with a combined market value of more than US$200 billion, a little over a year after earlier talks between the two collapsed.

The companies have been discussing a combination of some or all of their businesses, including an all-share takeover, they said in separate statements on Thursday.

A tie-up between the two companies would represent the largest-ever deal in an industry that has been gripped by takeover fever as the biggest producers seek to bulk up on copper — a crucial metal for the energy transition that is trading near record highs. Glencore and Rio both own large copper assets, and the potential deal would create a new mining behemoth to rival BHP Group, which has long held the title of the biggest miner.

The Rio Tinto Group logo atop Central Park tower, which houses the company`s offices, in Perth, Australia, yesterday. Photo: Bloomberg

The move comes after Rio CEO Simon Trott last month said the miner would focus on cutting costs and selling assets in a bid to turn into a slimmed-down operation centered primarily on iron ore and copper. Trott, who ran Rio’s iron ore division before taking the helm in August last year, aims to sharpen an organization that critics say became bloated in recent years.

“This is Simon’s first test as CEO and I would expect his disciplined approach to be carried through to M&A [merger and acquisition],” said John Ayoub, a portfolio manager at Rio shareholder Wilson Asset Management. “Coal is where a lack of detail is evident. You would think that coal would be one of the first divestments a merged company looks at, but we are all shooting from the hip today.”

Rio and Glencore held discussions in 2024, but the talks were abandoned after they failed to agree on valuation. Since then, Rio replaced its CEO, while Glencore made an effort to publicly outline its copper growth prospects.

The talks come at a time when copper has never been hotter. The metal soared to record highs above US$13,000 a tonne earlier this week, driven by a slew of mine outages and moves to stockpile the metal in the US ahead of possible tariffs from US President Donald Trump.

For Rio, a deal with Glencore would significantly expand its copper production and give the company a stake in the Collahuasi mine in Chile, one of the world’s richest deposits, and one that it has long coveted. While Rio already owns large copper assets, it and larger rival BHP both still get a substantial share of their earnings from iron ore, a market that faces an uncertain demand future as China’s decades-long construction boom is drawing to an end.


title: Client consultation

content_text: A woman shops for tomatoes while a cat sits on a post box at a market in Chennai, India, yesterday.


content_text:
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Saturday last week accused China of “digital authoritarianism” and transnational repression after Strait Plus (今日海峽), a Chinese state-controlled media channel, disseminated personal information about Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Puma Shen (沈伯洋), including satellite images of his home and workplace in Taipei.

It was the latest escalation in a months-long campaign of intimidation and harassment that has followed Shen well beyond the realm of rhetoric, testing the boundaries of what Taiwan and the international community are prepared to tolerate.

Shen has been under sustained pressure since Chinese authorities last year announced they were investigating him for alleged “secession-related” activities, branding him “wanted” under Beijing’s sweeping and extraterritorial national security framework.

Chinese state media have amplified calls for his arrest, with some commentators even floating the use of Interpol — an idea dismissed by experts, but one intended to intimidate nonetheless.

Rather than receding, the pressure has intensified even as Shen carried out international political outreach with the US, South Korea, Germany and the Netherlands that focused on defending democratic institutions against authoritarian influence.

That persistence is precisely why Shen is being targeted so aggressively.

A former academic with expertise in disinformation and financial crime, he represents a category the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) finds uniquely threatening — a democratically elected lawmaker who understands authoritarian tactics, exposes them publicly and refuses to yield to them.

His appearances before foreign parliaments — including an address to a German committee on authoritarian disinformation — underscore Beijing’s failure to silence him. However, for Chinese state-linked media to publish detailed information of a private residence and workplace marks a dangerous shift.

As the ministry noted, such conduct contravenes basic principles of privacy enshrined in international human rights norms. It is also profoundly irresponsible. Doxxing is not merely an act of digital harassment, it is a deliberate exposure of an individual to foreseeable harm. When carried out by actors tied to a powerful state with a documented record of coercion, it cannot be dismissed as rhetorical excess.

The risks are not hypothetical. Shen last month was confronted on the street by a man who filmed and verbally threatened him while Shen was accompanied by his young daughter. The incident, now under investigation by police, was a reminder that inflammatory discourse can create real-world dangers for public figures and their loved ones.

Publishing the location of Shen’s home and workplace only escalates these risks — not just for Shen, but for anyone in his vicinity. That such escalation comes after months of official vilification should alarm anyone concerned with the safety and dignity of public servants in a democratic society.

Shen’s is far from an isolated case. China’s use of transnational repression — legal threats, surveillance, harassment by proxies and now digital exposure — has been increasingly documented in democracies around the world.

Lawmakers, activists and journalists critical of Beijing have faced similar tactics, from intimidation abroad to pressure exerted on family members at home. The objective is consistent — to export fear and induce self-censorship.

What distinguishes Shen’s case is that it is unfolding in full view of the public, targeting a sitting lawmaker on Taiwanese soil. Its implications are unavoidable.

Regarding the intimidation of elected officials as commonplace would compromise the integrity of democratic participation. If threats against families are met with resignation rather than resolve, the message sent would not be restraint, but vulnerability.

The government’s response so far — swift condemnation, police protection and coordination with international partners — has been appropriate. However, the larger test lies in consistency.

Democracies do not need to respond to coercion with escalation, but with clarity. That means refusing to normalize harassment, resisting the temptation to downplay the risks posed and ensuring that public officials can carry out their duties without fear of personal reprisal.

The CCP’s campaign against Shen is not a sign of strength. It is an admission of anxiety and insecurity over voices it cannot control and systems it cannot replicate. Taiwan should recognize it as such.

Yielding to intimidation, whether through silence or complacency, would only validate the CCP’s tactics. Standing firm, by contrast, would affirm a basic democratic principle — that political disagreement does not justify endangerment.

As Shen emphasized himself, Taiwan should never draw back in fear, but stand resolute in defense of its democracy.

title: EDITORIAL: Stand up to CCP’s intimidation


content_text:
A succession of disasters of natural and human origin over the course of last year have hit Taiwan hard. From earthquakes and extreme weather events to public security incidents, disasters became a part of everyday life.

Earthquakes give immediate rise to damage reports and safety checks across social media, demonstrating the maturity of civic mobilization and digital mutual aid practices. These same incidents also expose the precarity of aging buildings, infrastructure and emergency response systems. Disasters have become re-emerging mirrors that reflect Taiwan’s long-accumulated governance problems yet to be fully confronted.

Broadly, Taiwan’s capacity to respond to disasters has certainly improved. Most people now possess basic knowledge of how to evacuate or take shelter in an earthquake, and the reaction times of local governments and fire services are much faster than in the past. However, behind this seemingly well-practiced response there is another hidden danger: the normalization of risk.

As disasters become more frequent, society can slip into a state of diminished alertness, quickly returning to normal so long as there are not high casualties. This might be helpful for the stabilization of collective social psychology, but it could also reduce pressure for structural reforms, and allow the long-term investments required for reforming disaster prevention and resilience capacity to be repeatedly postponed.

Public safety incidents further highlight the problem of fragmented governance. Whether in earthquake safety codes, the renewal of aging housing stock, safety of transportation infrastructure or risk management in large public spaces, responsibility is often spread across multiple authorities, with divided mandates and inconsistent standards. This mode of governance seems to only respond after each disaster when the same “old” problems must be revisited, and continually struggles to advance genuine progress.

From a longer-term perspective, climate change and earthquake risks are compounding to amplify Taiwan’s disaster challenges. Extreme weather is altering rainfall patterns, increasing the risks of landslides and flooding that can also be set off by unpredictable seismic events, demanding a high degree of societal resilience. The issue is that this resilience comes not just from emergency response efficiency, but everyday investment choices. If disaster response budgets are treated as costs rather than essential public investments, and political calculations and short-term interests continue to constrain seismic retrofitting and urban renewal, the costs of future disasters would only lead to even heftier bills.

The frequent disasters of the past year have provided an opportunity to rethink our priorities of governance. Genuine disaster prevention should not stop at public awareness campaigns and drills, but be executed through institutional design and smart resource allocation. Accelerating the reinforcement of aging buildings, integrating cross-agency public safety governance and establishing more transparent risk-information mechanisms are tasks that can no longer be deferred.

The fallout from disasters are never isolated events; they are the cumulative result of a series of choices. We must honestly confront a simple question: Before the next disaster arrives, have we truly made different choices?

Roger Lo is a freelancer.

Translated by Gilda Knox Streader

title: Make correct choices for resilience


content_text:
For Taiwan, the intensifying confrontation between the US and China is often discussed through arms sales, military exercises and diplomatic statements in the Indo-Pacific region. Yet events in Latin America suggest that Washington’s approach to deterring Beijing is no longer confined to Asia alone. Instead, it is increasingly global, with direct implications for Taiwan’s security environment and diplomatic space.

That shift became clearer on Saturday last week when the US conducted a military operation in Venezuela that resulted in the capture of then-Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. Both were transferred to New York, where they face federal charges related to narco-terrorism and drug trafficking. While the operation unfolded far from East Asia, its strategic logic is closely connected to Washington’s broader effort to constrain Chinese influence across multiple regions.

The US Department of Justice has long accused Maduro of leading the “Cartel of the Suns,” an organization that has been designated a terrorist organization. The accusations now looming over the former president and his wife allege that the Venezuelan state itself had become deeply entangled with transnational criminal networks.

The arrest immediately polarized international opinion. Supporters of the military action argued that Maduro had lost legitimacy years earlier and did not represent the Venezuelan people, while critics contended that the operation violated Article 2 of the UN Charter, which prohibits the use of force against the sovereignty of another state.

Since 2019, more than 50 governments, including the US and most EU members, have refused to recognize Maduro as Venezuela’s legitimate president. For years, Washington relied on sanctions, indictments and diplomatic isolation without showing too much interest in engaging in direct action. That long-standing posture changed only after Venezuela’s 2024 presidential election, when opposition forces released detailed voting records showing that Edmundo Gonzalez, backed by Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado, had won decisively. The combination of prolonged nonrecognition and a documented electoral defeat marked a turning point that preceded direct US enforcement action.

The US last month sent the biggest aircraft carrier in the world to the Venezuelan coast, and since its arrival the administration of US President Donald Trump has claimed to have taken out more than 30 vessels and more than 100 people that were allegedly involved in drug-smuggling operations.

For Taiwan, the significance lies less in Venezuela’s domestic politics than in what the episode signals about US willingness to escalate against governments closely aligned with Beijing. China has invested heavily in Venezuela as a strategic partner, securing access to energy resources and political backing in international forums. In practical terms, there is no other nation that has been so consistent in its support for China and that has done so much work as an amplifier of anti-US rhetoric in the region. The removal of such a partner weakens Beijing’s position in the western hemisphere while reinforcing the message that alignment with China does not guarantee immunity from US pressure.

This pattern extends beyond Venezuela. In Central America, Washington has placed renewed emphasis on countering Beijing’s diplomatic inroads. Honduras’ decision in 2023 to sever ties with Taipei in favor of Beijing was widely seen as part of China’s strategy to further shrink Taiwan’s diplomatic space. US political engagement in Honduras has raised the possibility of a reassessment of that decision. Trump in November last year endorsed presidential candidate Nasry Asfura from the National Party, who was one of the two candidates that obtained most of the votes and promised to restore ties with Taiwan if elected. This underscores how Taiwan’s remaining diplomatic partnerships are increasingly embedded in great-power competition rather than bilateral considerations alone.

The economic dimension is equally important. Venezuela’s vast reserves of gold, iron ore and rare earths have strategic value in an era where supply chains are central to national security. China’s dominance over rare earths has given Beijing leverage in trade disputes, prompting the US to treat them as a strategic vulnerability. Reducing Chinese access to such resources in Latin America complements Washington’s parallel efforts in Asia to limit Beijing’s technological and military advantages.

These global moves intersect directly with Taiwan policy. A central pillar of Washington’s approach has been the approval of a US$11.1 billion arms package for Taiwan, the largest in history. US officials have framed the sale as defensive, aimed at strengthening deterrence and enhancing Taiwan’s capacity to respond to coercion, particularly scenarios involving blockades or limited military pressure. The package was approved amid heightened Chinese military activity around Taiwan, signaling that US commitments to Taiwan are being reinforced even as tensions rise.

Beyond the arms deal itself, the Pentagon has made several statements describing the sale as a deal that “serves US national, economic and security interests by supporting Taiwan’s continuing efforts to modernize its armed forces.” Remarks that are very telling about the US direction and that indicate the importance of the role that places on Taiwan.

Beijing’s response was swift. The Chinese People’s Liberation Army conducted large-scale exercises simulating a blockade of Taiwan, reinforcing concerns in Taipei that military pressure would remain a central tool of Chinese policy. President William Lai’s (賴清德) pledge to defend Taiwan and strengthen resilience reflected a growing consensus that deterrence now depends both on the construction of regional alliances and on the credibility of US actions globally.

From this perspective, developments in Latin America and the Indo-Pacific region are not separate stories. They are components of a single strategic framework in which Washington seeks to counter Chinese influence diplomatically, economically and militarily. For Taiwan, this means that US actions far beyond Asia can shape the balance of power that ultimately determines the nation’s security and international standing.

The arrest of Maduro therefore matters in Taipei not because it concerns Venezuela itself, but because it illustrates a broader shift in US strategy. As competition with China intensifies, Taiwan sits at the center of a global contest in which actions taken thousands of kilometers away can still have direct consequences for the nation’s future.

Juan Fernando Herrera Ramos is a Honduran journalist based in Taipei.

title: Trump’s China strategy evolving


content_text:
After staging military exercises around Taiwan last week, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) once again launched a ruthless repression campaign against Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Puma Shen (沈伯洋). From threatening to pursue a global arrest warrant to disseminating satellite photographs of Shen’s workplace and residence in Taipei, the threats are now aimed directly at Taiwan.

This is not merely personal intimidation, it is a direct challenge to Taiwan’s sovereignty and democratic system. Shen has long strived to dismantle the CCP’s information warfare and advocated for whole-of-society defense — it is precisely because he hits the nail on the head that he has become a target that the CCP is determined to eliminate.

RESISTANCE

Shen’s role — combining that of a legislator, a researcher of open-source intelligence and cognitive warfare, and a civil advocate — symbolizes the conscious resistance of Taiwan’s younger generation and the intellectual community to the CCP’s authoritarianism.

This is precisely what gives the CCP’s goal of issuing an Interpol “red notice” and formally pursuing Shen such strong political symbolism. For Taiwan, the so-called “Puma Shen phenomenon” is not merely a matter of a single legislator being threatened — it epitomizes how a democratic nation confronts infiltration and transnational repression by an authoritarian regime.

However, this incident has also laid bare the internal conflict in Taiwan between choosing engagement and confrontation. On one hand, civil society has rallied around the slogan “We are all Puma Shen,” demonstrating both clarity and resistance. On the other hand, some politicians and members of the public have opted for self-censorship out of fear of causing “misunderstandings” with the CCP, thereby allowing the battle to defend Taiwan to devolve into one of internal friction.

UNITY

The true crisis has never been limited to external threats, but whether society can maintain internal unity.

Even more perverse is that, when Shen was threatened, Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) and other Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators not only failed to condemn the CCP, but instead mocked Shen — with some even suggesting that he travel to China to “clear up the misunderstanding.”

At a time when the CCP had already listed Shen as wanted and trampled on Taiwan’s judicial sovereignty, proposing to send a colleague into enemy territory is not just naive, but demonstrates complete apathy to sovereignty and national security. For the CCP, there has never been any “misunderstanding” — there is only surrender or resistance.

WARNING

The true significance of the “Puma Shen phenomenon” lies in the warning it offers Taiwan — when politicians, motivated by short-term interests, indulge in “united front” tactics and attack those on the frontline defending the nation, they are effectively paving the way for the CCP.

“We are all Puma Shen” is more than just a slogan, but a democratic society reinforcing its own identity in the face of authoritarian oppression.

Only by eliminating all pro-unification forces at home, building whole-of-society defense and demonstrating collective resolve can Taiwan show the world that a mature democracy would never bow down to intimidation.

Chu Meng-hsiang is former deputy secretary-general of the Lee Teng-hui Foundation.

Translated by Kyra Gustavsen

title: The real meaning of the Puma Shen affair


content_text:
We are used to hearing that whenever something happens, it means Taiwan is about to fall to China. Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) cannot change the color of his socks without China experts claiming it means an invasion is imminent. So, it is no surprise that what happened in Venezuela over the weekend triggered the knee-jerk reaction of saying that Taiwan is next.That is not an opinion on whether US President Donald Trump was right to remove Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro the way he did or if it is good for Venezuela and the world. There are other, more qualified

By JulienOeuillet 曾樂昂

China’s recent aggressive military posture around Taiwan simply reflects the truth that China is a millennium behind, as Kobe City Councilor Norihiro Uehata has commented.While democratic countries work for peace, prosperity and progress, authoritarian countries such as Russia and China only care about territorial expansion, superpower status and world dominance, while their people suffer.Two millennia ago, the ancient Chinese philosopher Mencius (孟子) would have advised Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) that “people are the most important, state is lesser, and the ruler is the least important.” In fact, the reverse order is causing the great depression in China right now,

By James J. Y. Hsu 許正餘

This should be the year in which the democracies, especially those in East Asia, lose their fear of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) “one China principle” plus its nuclear “Cognitive Warfare” coercion strategies, all designed to achieve hegemony without fighting.For 2025, stoking regional and global fear was a major goal for the CCP and its People’s Liberation Army (PLA), following on Mao Zedong’s (毛澤東) Little Red Book admonition, “We must be ruthless to our enemies; we must overpower and annihilate them.”But on Dec. 17, 2025, the Trump Administration demonstrated direct defiance of CCP terror with its record US$11.1 billion arms

title: EDITORIAL CARTOON


content_text:
Long regarded as too large and resilient to be affected, the world’s oceans are starting to feel the impacts of climate change, becoming a key feature of the next COP summit

In global climate policy, the ocean was long treated as an afterthought, too vast to manage effectively and too resilient to be degraded. Instead, the focus was almost exclusively on reducing greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions and preserving forests. That era is now over.

At the most recent UN Climate Change Conference (COP30) in Belem, Brazil, the ocean moved from the margins to the mainstream of climate governance. It featured prominently in national climate plans, adaptation frameworks, the follow-up to the first “global stocktake” under the Paris climate agreement and even the evolving architecture of climate finance.

This shift in the global agenda was likely inevitable, as the ocean increasingly suffers the effects of absorbing more than 90 percent of the excess heat trapped by GHGs and about one-quarter of annual carbon dioxide emissions. The consequences include warming, acidification, deoxygenation, collapsing fisheries, and coastal erosion. Small island developing states (SIDS) and least developed countries (LDCs), many of which are extremely vulnerable to sea-level rise, accelerated the shift by framing ocean governance as a matter not just of environmental management, but of survival and justice.

Consider, for example, COP30’s headline political declaration, the Global Mutirao, which frames climate change, biodiversity loss, and land and ocean degradation as interconnected crises demanding shared solutions and collective action. It explicitly recognizes the role of marine ecosystems in climate stability and sustainable development, giving governments the political cover to integrate ocean and coastal issues into their national climate strategies, development plans and funding proposals.

A new baseline has been established. For the first time in the UN climate process, the official synthesis of national climate plans contains a section dedicated to the ocean. Roughly three-quarters of these national plans include marine references, such as blue carbon, offshore renewables, fisheries resilience and maritime decarbonization. The next step is to move toward quantified ocean-based targets, measurable blue-carbon accounting and concrete investment pledges for coastal communities.

At COP30, governments also adopted the Belam Adaptation Indicators to track action and progress under the Global Goal on Adaptation. While these indicators are sector-neutral, they are still highly relevant to the health of coastal ecosystems, the resilience of fisheries, the vulnerability of coastal infrastructure and livelihoods, and early-warning coverage. Crucially, climate funds — including the Green Climate Fund, the Global Environment Facility and the Adaptation Fund — have been encouraged to align their support with these indicators. This could give rise to a new generation of bankable ocean-adaptation projects.

Moreover, ocean-based solutions are attracting more resources. The One Ocean Partnership, which launched at COP30, aims to mobilize US$20 billion for coastal resilience, blue-carbon ecosystems and ocean protection; create 20 million blue jobs worldwide; and restore 20 million hectares of marine ecosystems by 2030. More consequential was the UN Standing Committee on Finance’s announcement that its forum this year would focus on financing climate action in water systems and the ocean — a formal push for blue investment that would have been unthinkable a decade ago.

However, treaties and conferences are no longer the only means for creating climate obligations. International law has started to converge with climate science. In 2024, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea ruled that GHG emissions constitute marine pollution under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. Last year, the International Court of Justice affirmed that states have a binding legal duty to prevent foreseeable climate harm.

This legal evolution would be important for disputes over state conduct at sea, particularly as the world confronts the next frontier of climate intervention: marine carbon dioxide removal. Techniques such as alkalinity enhancement and large-scale algal cultivation might eventually contribute to net-zero strategies, but they could pose ecological risks and currently exist in a fragmented regulatory landscape. In the absence of coordinated ocean governance, unilateral experimentation could trigger transboundary effects and conflict.

As influence continues to shift away from traditional power centers (a trend on display at COP30), and as SIDS and LDCs increasingly shape global climate norms, ocean and coastal resilience would continue to gain prominence in policy debates. Even advanced economies have begun to realize the importance of a sustainable approach to marine resources and ocean management, with the G20 establishing Oceans 20, a group focused on this goal, under Brazil’s presidency in 2024.

The design of COP31 points toward a new geopolitical landscape: Australia and Turkey will colead the conference, while a pre-COP gathering would be held on a Pacific Island state with Australian support. This has raised hopes that it could be the first truly “blue” COP. In that case, ocean-based targets and action would become even more important in national climate strategies, global stocktake metrics, climate-finance rules and technology-transfer systems over the next few years.

In fact, the maritime century might be upon us. The ocean is the planet’s largest carbon sink, the backbone of global trade, a critical source of food and energy, and the frontline of climate vulnerability. It is also becoming a site of strategic competition for data, technology, resources and legal leverage.

The climate’s fate depends on what happens to the ocean, and fragmented mandates, outdated treaties and siloed financing are no longer sufficient to ensure its health. The question is whether institutions can evolve quickly enough to establish the durable, equitable and effective governance structures required for safeguarding this critical planetary system.

Kilaparti Ramakrishna is senior advisor to the president and director on ocean and climate policy at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

Copyright: Project Syndicate

title: The ocean has finally entered the global climate debate