title: Taiwanese film hunters rescue reels from bygone era

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In a dimly lit red-brick house in central Taiwan, film hunter Wang Wei and his team haul out aging film reels, salvaging the fragile remnants of a cinema boom that nearly vanished from history.

Rare Taiwanese-language films — known locally as taiyupian (台語片) — flourished briefly from the mid-1950s to the late 1960s under the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government, which fled to Taiwan following its defeat by the Chinese Communist Party.

Until it lifted martial law in the late 1980s, the KMT promoted Mandarin as the official language of Taiwan and sidelined Hoklo (also known as Taiwanese), but independent and private producers still made the widely watched black-and-white movies.

Film projectionist and collector Wang Chin-ting, left, watches as Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute personnel transfer old film reels at his archive in Changhua County on May 29. Photo: I-Hwa Cheng, AFP

Taiwan is now racing to restore the decades-old reels to preserve a chapter of its culture, with film preservers having salvaged fewer than one-sixth of the estimated 1,200 films produced.

Their value lies in existing for “such a short period,” Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute chairman Arthur Chu (褚明仁) said, adding that they represent “an almost-voiceless post-war generation.”

Wang said it is “meaningful” if the films can be rediscovered, a tribute to those “who worked so hard to make them and captured the images of Taiwan at that time.”

A Preservation and Restoration Center technician repairs a Taiwanese-language film at the Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute in New Taipei City on June 23. Photo: I-Hwa Cheng, AFP

If the rare vintage reels are discarded or deteriorate, “there’s no way to bring them back,” he said as he directed a team wearing head torches to recover the reels.

“They’re gone forever,” he said.

Finding Taiwanese-language films is “extremely difficult,” said Wang, who has chased the vintage movies for 10 years and once discovered rare celluloids at an old theater in Los Angeles.

He works with the government-funded institute, which has spent nearly two decades tracking down surviving reels, many of which were lost or left to deteriorate in the nation’s hot and humid climate.

The aging cellulose acetate films are at risk of developing “vinegar syndrome,” which can make film brittle, warped or sticky.

The films must be kept in cold storage before they can be repaired by hand, scanned, and digitally cleaned and corrected.

Among those helping preserve the films is 86-year-old supplier Wang Chin-ting, who began working in the movie business in 1984 and bought a film company 12 years later.

Of the hundreds of reels he collected, only a handful are Taiwanese-language ones. They are now stored in his ancestral home in Changhua, the brick house providing naturally cool, dry storage conditions.

Wang Chin-ting lifts each reel from its flat, circular metal can and threads it through a rewinding machine, a process that helps prevent the old films from deteriorating.

At the institute’s restoration center in New Taipei City, film restorer Wu Long-hao painstakingly repairs damaged reels by hand using tape, a scalpel and eucalyptus oil.

“Some reels are in such poor condition that we have to assume they may only survive a single pass through the scanner,” he said. “If they snap, they are beyond saving.”

Ranging from popular operas, thrillers, comedies and romance dramas — even Taiwanese versions of international blockbusters such as James Bond and Tarzan — the films resonated with many Taiwanese who had been educated during Japan’s colonial rule and had limited Mandarin skills.

Produced quickly with limited budgets to meet booming demand, Chu said many taiyupian were “crude” or even “absurd,” but they provide a rare, visual record of everyday life in Taiwan at the time.

They also captured old Taiwanese dialogue and slang, and have become a valuable record for film researchers and linguists.

Although the last such film was made in 1981, the launch of TV stations, and the rise of Taiwanese and Mandarin-language TV dramas from the late 1960s triggered a sharp decline in the industry.

However, the films gave the post-World War II generation that could neither understand nor read Mandarin “a deep sense of comfort and an emotional outlet,” Chu said.

People were willing to buy a ticket, because the films spoke to them during years of repression and hardship, he said.

“The stories of joy, sorrow, love and loss touched their hearts,” he added.


title: NIA warns summer travelers against bringing pork into Taiwan

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The National Immigration Agency (NIA) yesterday urged travelers not to bring pork or other meat products from African swine fever (ASF)-affected areas into Taiwan during the summer travel season to prevent the spread of the disease.

In a statement, the NIA said 542 travelers were fined NT $200,000 (US$6,262) each last year for bringing pork products from ASF-affected areas into Taiwan, citing Customs Administration data.

Many of those fined were Taiwanese nationals, while 144 foreign travelers were denied entry after failing to pay the penalties, the agency said.

A National Immigration Agency poster in several languages tells people not to bring pork into Taiwan from areas affected by African swine fever. Photo copied by Wang Kuan-jen, Taipei Times

The NIA warned travelers to exercise caution when buying overseas souvenirs, saying illegally bringing pork products into Taiwan could jeopardize the country’s disease- free status and result in hefty fines.

Taiwan regained its ASF-free status on April 6 after receiving official recognition from the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), becoming the only country in Asia free of ASF, classical swine fever and foot-and-mouth disease, the agency said.

The designation followed Taiwan’s successful containment of an ASF outbreak detected last October.

According to customs statistics, most violations involved travelers carrying prohibited pork products in their luggage, followed by international courier parcels.

The NIA said it has stepped up outreach to foreign residents, holding more than 300 awareness events through mid-June for new immigrants, overseas students and migrant workers, distributing over 56,000 informational leaflets and sending more than 300 messages through Line groups, reaching over 24,000 people.

Although ASF does not affect humans, it is highly contagious and often fatal in pigs. Minister of Agriculture Chen Junne-jih (陳駿季) has estimated that a major outbreak could cost Taiwan’s hog industry nearly NT$80 billion, with total economic losses exceeding NT$200 billion, including related sectors such as feed production and transportation.

The NIA urged the public not to bring, buy or mail pork products into Taiwan to help safeguard the country’s livestock industry.


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Transformers: Taiwan photographer holds mobile ‘Stage’ show in India

An exhibition of works by Taiwanese photographer Shen Chao-liang (沈昭良) showcasing the unique beauty of Taiwan’s mobile show stage trailers is currently being shown at India’s Museo Camera in Gurugram, Haryana.

Officially called “Taiwan Focus: ‘Stage’ Shen Chao-liang Photography Exhibition,” the show runs from July 3-28 and features works from the photographer’s “Stage” (舞台車) photo series, taken around Taiwan from 2005-2023.

During those years, Shen traveled across Taiwan to capture images of mobile show stages that are used locally for celebratory performances during temple festivals and personal events.

Cultural similarities

The photographer told CNA at the event’s official opening that since creating the Stage photo series, he has long hoped to exhibit it in India, after observing striking similarities between the two countries in the way they use mobile hardware for celebrations and grassroots aesthetics.

Shen said he made this discovery after visiting Old Delhi, where he enjoyed traditional Indian music and dance performances.

Based on his experience, he explained, in both Taiwan and India, religious celebrations and folk activities take to the streets and tend to incorporate multiple vibrant visual elements that are spontaneously crafted together.

These daily expressions of culture and tradition not only reflect the lifestyles of local people, they also introduce aesthetic characteristics accumulated over time in the different societies, he said.

Transformers: Show stage in disguise

On the subject matter of his Stage series, Shen said what are colloquially called the “Transformers of Taiwan” are not simply mobile show stages, but also symbolic transporters of regional culture.

The dazzling lights, vibrant colors, and diverse graphic decorations of the trailers fully demonstrate the vigorous creativity of Taiwanese grassroots culture, he said.

Although originally used for folk entertainment, the stage trailers have gradually been adopted for use at religious ceremonies, weddings, funerals, and local festivals, which has further developed them into an important cultural phenomenon that blends together entertainment, ritual, and social functions, he added.

Enjoying local aesthetics

The artist said he hopes Indian audiences will gain a better understanding of Taiwan’s celebratory temple culture and rural fairs from his solo exhibition.

Through the Stage series, he seeks to show Indian audiences how Taiwan has developed its own culture, memories, and unique aesthetic through religion, celebrations and collective activities.

Shen said many folk traditions from both countries were born from the earth, “grown from the very land” which cultivated their respective peoples.

The aesthetics from such folk cultures then get preserved or continued through religion and history. Thus, both Taiwan and India retain strong folk cultural characteristics that demonstrate the profound and close connections between the earth and its people, he said.

The connection was not deliberate, but rather formed naturally through life and was subsequently preserved over time, according to Shen.

Both Taiwan’s mobile stage culture and India’s various celebrations involve transportable hardware such as floats which serve as examples of human ingenuity, and also showcase the tenacity of human cultural advancement.

Shen said the Indian leg of the Stage exhibition not only presents the mobile stage trailers of Taiwan, but also aims to shine a light on the neighborhoods they entertain, such as the streets, communities, groups, and the various festivals they take part in.

“Photography is not simply recording; it is also a medium to further examine society,” Shen said. “We are given the opportunity to understand and comprehend a particular era through photography, such as the political, economic, or social transformations of a certain time in history.”


title: Summer activity

content_text: People participate in water activities at the Yilan International Children’s Folklore and Folkgame Festival in an undated photograph. This year’s event, which opened on Saturday and runs through Aug. 16, is built around four main themes — games, exhibitions, performances and cultural exchange, the event organizers said.


title: Street fashion

content_text: A person looks at a display at an exhibition titled “This City Passed Through Democracy” in Taipei yesterday. Hosted by organizations including the Taiwan Society for Hong Kong Studies, the exhibition showcases T-shirts worn at public events in Hong Kong over the past several decades, using clothing design to reflect on the territory’s culture and social history.


content_text: Masks by master artisan Huang Chih-wei are displayed at an exhibition titled “Divine Warriors, Iron Guardians” at the Beigang Cultural Center in Chiayi County yesterday. The event, which runs through Sept. 2, features a collection of 100 painted opera masks that Huang said he hoped would provide a comprehensive look at the art of facial painting and challenge long-held social stereotypes.

title: Captivating art


title: Micron starts Japan chip expansion

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GOVERNMENT-BACKED:  The Japanese government has allocated about ￥775 billion to the US company so far, along with funds to support its research and development

Micron Technology Inc on Saturday broke ground on the expansion of its factory in western Japan, a ￥1.5 trillion (US$9.3 billion) undertaking to produce advanced memory chips.

The Boise, Idaho-based company is building the facility in Hiroshima to make chips such as high-bandwidth memory (HBM) crucial for artificial intelligence (AI) processors like Nvidia Corp’s, with shipments to start in the summer of 2028. Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has allocated up to ￥500 billion to help cover the cost.

The move is part of a global ramp up by memory makers to meet demand for AI. Micron is building two leading-edge fabs in Boise and in January held a groundbreaking ceremony for a US$100 billion production site outside Syracuse, New York, part of a pledge to increase DRAM production on US soil. South Korea’s SK Hynix Inc and Samsung Electronics Co are also boosting manufacturing capacity.

The logo for Micron Technology is pictured at their headquarters on June 25 last year in San Jose, Californa. Photo: AFP

“Micron’s very first HBM production wafer — for the memory technology at the heart of AI — was made right here in Hiroshima,” Micron chief executive officer Sanjay Mehrotra said during a ceremony attended by central and local government officials. “When American boldness meets Japanese craftsmanship, you do not get a compromise. You get the best in the world.”

The factory expansion in Japan would help Micron raise power and transmission efficiency in chips needed for AI services and self-driving vehicles. Along with funds to support research and development, the Japanese government has earmarked about ￥775 billion for the US company to date.

Japan’s support for Micron, the only maker of DRAM within the country’s borders, has “invaluable worth,” Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Ryosei Akazawa said. Should other overseas chipmakers seek to build factories in Japan, the country is ready to do “all that it can” to help, he said.

Since 2021, the country has set aside tens of billions of dollars of support for semiconductors and AI, seeking to gain leadership in a sector seen as central for national security. Last month, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi released a roadmap targeting private and public investment into chips and AI to the tune of ￥101.6 trillion through March 2041, without giving a breakdown on how much would come from government coffers.

“The Hiroshima factory’s strength lies in its ability to quickly deliver cutting-edge and high-performance products to customers,” Micron Memory Japan K.K. representative director Kota Nosaka said. “Creating next-generation chips here is directly tied to Micron’s strategy.”

Micron took possession of the Hiroshima factory when it acquired bankrupt Japanese DRAM maker Elpida Memory Inc in 2013.

Japan is home to many corporate linchpins in advanced chip materials and gear, but it has largely ceded leadership in finished semiconductors. About 80 percent of chip materials the Hiroshima factory needs now come from Japan, Nosaka said.


title: Largan reports weak revenue in second quarter

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DOWNTURN?  The 12.09 percent decrease for the April-to-June period came after Yuanta Securities forecast 39 percent growth in revenue for the third quarter

Handset camera lens maker Largan Precision Co (大立光) yesterday reported weaker-than-expected revenue for the second quarter, after sales last month reached the lowest level in 13 months as clients entered a product transition period and the company experienced delivery schedule issues.

Revenue for the April-to-June period was NT$13.66 billion (US$427.81 million), down 12.09 percent from the same period last year, but increasing 17.07 percent year-on-year, the company said in a statement.

It came after revenue last month decreased 19.18 percent quarterly and was down 10.46 percent annually to NT$3.71 billion, the lowest since May last year when revenue was NT$3.24 billion.

Yuanta Securities Investment Consulting Co (元大投顧), which had expected Largan’s second-quarter revenue to reach NT$1.4 billion, forecast that third-quarter revenue would grow 39 percent sequentially to NT$19.5 billion as the handset industry enters a peak season, it said in a note on Wednesday last week.

“Apple is set to launch iPhone 18 with variable aperture lenses in the third quarter, which will support Largan’s product average selling price, as it has an exclusive supply share,” Yuanta said.

Largan’s revenue for the first half of the year rose 11.26 percent to NT$29.21 billion, compared with NT$26.25 billion a year ago, company data showed.

The Taichung-based company is the world’s largest handset camera lens producer, supplying high-end products for Apple Inc and Android phone vendors, such as Samsung Electronics, Xiaomi Corp (小米) and Huawei Technologies Co (華為).

Largan is to release its second-quarter financial results and factory utilization at an earnings conference on Thursday, and give sales guidance for this quarter.

Investors would learn about the company’s gross margin results, after it fell to 49.4 percent in the first quarter from 54.63 percent a year earlier due to low yields on some products, higher fixed asset investments and increased electricity costs.

Investors are also expected to hear from the company about its progress in the copackaged optics (CPO) business, as Largan is focused on the key component for CPO — fiber array unit (FAU) — which is crucial for optical interconnects at artificial intelligence servers.

Largan has spent eight months in research and development on optical communication applications, leveraging its expertise in precision alignment.

The company can manufacture precision alignment equipment in-house which can control process accuracy for coupling photonic component to optical fibers better than industry standards, Yuanta said.

While the company plans to establish pilot lines using semi-automated production and prepares to send its FAU samples to customers for testing, meaningful FAU sales contribution would not come until 2028 at the earliest, following equipment installation and mass production, Yuanta added.


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SK Hynix Inc is considering paying about 0.5 percent of the proceeds from its US listing — one of the largest share sales ever — to banks working on the deal, people familiar with the matter said.

While SK Hynix has indicated it would issue as much as 2.5 percent of its total shares, the final deal size — which would determine the fee amount — is not yet set, the people said. The company might also choose to pay discretionary incentives on top of the base fee, they said.

Based on the company’s latest market capitalization of about US$1.1 trillion, the offering could raise about US$26.5 billion, which would translate to more than US$130 million in total fees at the 0.5 percent payout rate.

The SK Group logo is pictured at the SK Hynix Inc office building in Seongnam, South Korea, on Tuesday. Photo: Bloomberg

Bank of America Corp, Citigroup Inc, Goldman Sachs Group Inc and JPMorgan Chase & Co are leading the share sale.

SK Hynix has been a beneficiary of the hype around artificial intelligence (AI) as investors bet that demand for memory and storage would be a long-term growth story. The company is the top supplier of high-bandwidth memory after becoming the go-to provider for Nvidia Corp, the dominant maker of AI processors.

In the SK Hynix offering, the job for bankers should be made easier by investor familiarity with a company that has long been listed in its home country and has been one of the hottest names among global technology stocks this year.

One of the sources of uncertainty is the volatility of SK Hynix shares listed in Seoul. The stock has gone through wild gyrations last week, falling as much as 15 percent on Thursday and rising up to 10 percent on Friday. Even with a drop of 20 percent from last month’s peak, SK Hynix is still up 770 percent in 12 months.

Separately, the Bank of Korea (BOK) warned that single-stock leveraged exchange-traded funds (ETFs) tied to SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics Co could deepen market concentration, amplify volatility and intensify one-way trading flows, a local report said.

“With Samsung and SK Hynix accounting for more than half of stock market capitalization and trading volume, expanding investment in single-stock leveraged ETFs could further intensify this concentration,” the central bank said in a written response submitted to People Power Party lawmaker Park Sung-hoon, Yonhap News reported.

The central bank said the products could amplify one-way trading as inflows and outflows grow in response to shifts in business conditions or market expectations. It also warned that, in the event of a correction, losses for retail investors could widen, while increased redemptions or portfolio rebalancing could add to share-price volatility.

The BOK plans to enhance monitoring of the impact of single-stock leveraged ETFs on the stock market and financial system, Yonhap News reported. Last month, South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service Governor Lee Chan-jin said he regretted not blocking their launch, warning their negative side effects have grown significantly.

title: SK Hynix mulls 0.5 percent fee payout in mega-offering


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CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) announced on Saturday that it would cut domestic gasoline and diesel prices by NT$0.6 and NT$0.7 per liter respectively this week in response to a fall in international crude oil prices.

Under CPC’s floating price mechanism, which is based on a weighting of 70 percent Dubai crude and 30 percent Brent crude, the average international oil price fell to US$67.05 per barrel last week, from US$69.80 the previous week.

Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) matched CPC’s price adjustments for this week, information posted yesterday on the company’s Web site showed.

International crude oil prices are falling as cargo-laden vessels continue to exit the Strait of Hormuz at a time when talks between the US and Iran on a long-term peace agreement progress, the company said.

Front-month Brent crude oil futures — the international oil benchmark — last week fell 0.66 percent to settle at US$72.12 per barrel on the Intercontinental Exchange in London, while West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures — the US oil gauge — dropped 0.78 percent in the week to US$68.69 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

This week, retail gasoline prices at CPC and Formosa stations would be NT$29.8, NT$31.3 and NT$33.3 per liter for 92, 95, and 98-octane unleaded gasoline respectively.

Prices for premium diesel would be NT$28.8 per liter at CPC stations and NT$28.6 per liter at Formosa pumps, the companies said.

It is the third consecutive week that CPC and Formosa have lowered domestic fuel prices.

title: CPC, Formosa to cut fuel prices again this week


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Hon Hai reports stronger-than-expected sales, suggesting sustained AI demand

Nvidia Corp’s server assembly partner Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) reported a stronger-than-expected increase in quarterly sales, a sign of sustained artificial intelligence (AI) demand.

Revenue grew 52.11 percent year-on-year to NT$821.8 billion (US$25.74 billion) last month, the company said in a statement yesterday.

Last month’s revenue reached the highest June level in the company’s history, but the figure remained 4.38 percent lower than previous month’s NT$859.41 billion, it said.

Visitors walk past Foxconn’s exhibition booth at Computex in Taipei on June 2. Photo: Cheng Yu-chen, AFP

Hon Hai’s sales for the June quarter rose 39.83 percent year-on-year to NT$2.51 trillion, the highest ever for the same period and 18.02 percent higher than the previous quarter’s NT$2.13 trillion. Analysts on average had expected NT$2.37 trillion.

The company said the cloud and networking products — primarily servers — electronic components, computing products and smart consumer electronics showed strong annual growth in sales during the second quarter.

For this quarter, the company expects revenue to show quarterly and annual increases on the back of robust AI rack shipments and strong seasonal demand for information and communications technology products, its statement said.

Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康), has established itself as a key AI hardware player by assembling servers that house Nvidia accelerators. Alphabet Inc, Amazon.com Inc, Meta Platforms Inc and Microsoft Corp are setting aside about US$725 billion for AI spending this year, even as warnings abound about overcapacity and questions about how to monetize the technology persist.

Concerns about a rush to build power-guzzling data centers have also grown since the start of conflict in the Middle East, which has piled pressure on global shipping routes and gas prices.

Hon Hai in March projected strong sales growth this year, fueled by sustained AI momentum. It derives a significant chunk of sales from assembling Apple Inc’s iPhones and MacBooks and is in a position to benefit from any positive reception for the latest iPhone 17 product family.

However, like many electronics manufacturers, Hon Hai faces a shortage of memory chips used in a wide range of products from smartphones to PCs and servers. Executives have said the crunch should not significantly impact demand for premium handset and computer products the company makes for major customers.

In the first half of this year, the company’s revenue increased 34.99 percent year-on-year to NT$4.64 trillion, also the highest for the same period, Hon Hai said.

Additional reporting by staff writer


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Major OPEC+ members agreed another modest increase to their collective oil-production quotas for next month, adding to the prospect of more supply eventually hitting the market if a US-Iran peace pact can stick.

Seven nations led by Saudi Arabia and Russia agreed at a video conference yesterday to add 188,000 barrels a day to their output target, OPEC said in a statement on its Web site. It’s in keeping with the group’s plan to finish reversing output curbs made a few years ago, and means that since the war began, they’ve added 940,000 barrels a day to quotas — equivalent to almost 1 percent of global demand.

Those increases have so far been theoretical because the war blocked the Strait of Hormuz and stopped Persian Gulf members from ramping up exports and output. However, since an interim peace pact between Tehran and Washington, the Saudis and their neighbors have started to restore shipments, helping drive a surplus in key Asian markets.

People walk past an installation depicting barrel of oil with the logo of Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in Baku, Azerbaijan on Nov. 19, 2024. Photo: Maxim Shemetov, Reuters

Oil futures have tumbled 43 percent from their war-time peak to near US$72 a barrel in London, and with some forecasters predicting the re-emergence of a global glut, OPEC and its partners could soon face a choice between restraining output or fighting over market share — a potential price war.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries is already facing a challenge to its unity, after founding member Iraq last month suggested it could ultimately exit if denied a higher production limit. Its campaign comes as the alliance conducts an audit of how much each member can physically produce, in order to determine individual targets for next year.

The United Arab Emirates quit the organization in May over similar frustrations with OPEC’s mandated output limits. Abu Dhabi has significant production capacity idled by the war to restart, and with ambitions to add more over time, could add pressure to prices and its former alliance counterparts.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE have restored oil exports to near pre-war levels, tanker-tracking data shows, thanks to both the peace accord and their success in getting cargoes through Hormuz. Still, their production levels remain well below normal rates, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Russia, which jointly leads OPEC+ with the Saudis, is contending with its own issues. The country’s crude exports have climbed to record highs, but the surge comes as Ukrainian drone strikes take a toll on its refineries, potentially diverting supplies that would have been processed domestically for sale overseas.

title: OPEC+ ratifies planned oil quota hike as Gulf flows rebound


title: Robocup

content_text: Humanoid robots compete in a soccer event during the final match of the RoboCup 2026 at the Songdo ConvensiA in Incheon, South Korea, yesterday.


title: Never mind Kenya, we still have Tanzania

content_text:
Kenyan Principal Secretary for Foreign Affairs Korir Sing’oei on June 17 said that the East African country would not recognize Taiwanese passports, and that travelers carrying Taiwanese passports would “ordinarily be denied entry at Kenya’s borders for lacking proper travel documentation.” This would make Kenya one of the very few countries to reject Taiwanese passports, following Cuba, Georgia and Pakistan.

Taiwan’s passport is widely accepted across the globe, with Taiwanese travelers enjoying visa-free, visa-on-arrival and e-visa privileges for convenient entry into more than 190 countries worldwide. Cuba, Georgia and Pakistan — which have long been subject to US economic sanctions — are officially listed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as countries unfriendly toward Taiwan. However, their refusal to recognize Taiwanese passports has had little practical impact on Taiwanese travelers, as their trade and economic interactions with Taiwan are very limited and they only attract a small number of Taiwanese tourists.

However, in the past few years, Kenya has become a popular emerging tourist destination for Taiwanese travelers visiting Africa. Every year during the dry season from July to September, millions of animals migrate across the Mara River in what is known as the Great Migration, one of the world’s most spectacular natural phenomena. Last year alone, several hundred Taiwanese tourists went there on safari tours, but Kenya is not the only place where visitors can witness this event; it is but one stop along the animals’ route. The neighboring country to the south, Tanzania, is the birthplace and departure point for many of the animals. If Kenya is no longer an option, Taiwanese travelers can instead visit Tanzania, which offers visas on arrival, to experience this remarkable spectacle.

If Kenya were to bar holders of Taiwanese passports from entering, it would clearly be a gesture aimed at currying favor with Beijing, reflecting the country’s deep entanglement in Chinese debt. The Standard Gauge Railway, linking Nairobi with Mombasa, is Kenya’s largest infrastructure project since independence and a flagship of China’s Belt and Road Initiative in Africa. Nearly a decade after operations began, Kenya still spends about US$1 billion annually servicing Chinese debt, despite Beijing restructuring parts of the loans.

At the end of June, the two countries signed an engineering contract worth US$1.2 billion for the renovation and expansion of Kenya’s capital airport, with a Chinese company undertaking half of the project’s costs through borrowing from China. Having essentially become an economic colony of China, Kenya has little room to resist Beijing’s demands. Thus, a refusal to recognize Taiwanese passports could be seen as a political favor for Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平).

To clearly express their anger and dissatisfaction, Taiwanese consumers can voluntarily reduce their purchases of Kenyan coffee beans and tea leaves. In a free market, there is no shortage of alternative choices. Choosing not to travel to Kenya and not to drink Kenyan coffee or black tea would bring absolutely no inconvenience.

Chen Yung-chang is a freelance writer based in Taipei.

Translated by Kyra Gustavsen


title: EDITORIAL CARTOON

content_text:
For years, international media and residents have lamented the treacherous conditions of Taiwan’s streets. Authorities have rolled out various crackdowns and stricter law enforcement. Yet, despite a staggering NT$14.2 billion (US$444.7 million) collected in traffic fines in 2024 alone, Taiwan’s roads remain as dangerous as ever. This exposes a fundamental flaw in Taiwan’s approach to traffic safety: an over-reliance on punitive measures over structural reform. A recent proposal by lawmakers to hold a referendum earmarking traffic fine revenue for road safety infrastructure and public transport subsidies is a step forward. It challenges the habit of treating traffic enforcement as a

By Hung Yu-jui 洪昱睿


content_text:
With the war in Ukraine stalled and economic strain rising, Putin could increasingly turn to escalation and hybrid provocations against NATO and Western targets

With Russia under pressure on multiple fronts, Russian President Vladimir Putin finds himself in a tighter spot than at any other moment of his quarter-century in power. Putin remains firmly in charge of the Kremlin, but there is a growing risk that he will try to escape his current predicament by escalating his conflict with the West.

Putin’s first problem is that his war in Ukraine has no momentum. Recent territorial gains have come slowly and at the cost of enormous loss of life (450,000 killed, almost eight times the US body count in Vietnam) and economic damage. After four years and four months, Russian forces control about 20 percent of Ukraine’s territory — the same percentage they held three years ago. Ukraine, meanwhile, continues to demonstrate its determination to win, its resilience in the face of Russian missile and drone attacks, and its remarkable capacity for innovation in weapons and battlefield tactics. Its successes have emboldened it to go on offense.

Most notably, Ukraine has successfully brought the war to the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia has occupied for a dozen years. Crimea is a crucial arena for both strategic and symbolic reasons. It was there, in 2014, that Russia began its war on Ukraine.

Putin has treated the territory as the crown jewel of his “New Russia” and invested heavily in its development, both to connect it to the Russian mainland and to make it an attractive place for Russians to live and visit. Crimea is also strategically vital for Ukraine’s continued access to the Black Sea, an economic lifeline.

In recent weeks, Ukraine has sent swarms of drones to attack military sites, power plants, and railway stations on the peninsula. It has struck Crimea-bound Russian trucks traveling through occupied eastern Ukraine and across the expensive Kerch bridge that Putin built after illegally annexing the peninsula. And it has hit Russian cargo ferries resupplying the region by water. As a result, Crimea’s residents face shortages (particularly of gasoline to fuel their cars) and frequent power outages.

However, Putin’s greatest frustration is Ukraine’s success in striking deep inside Russia itself. It was embarrassing enough that fears of a Ukrainian attack kept Russia from rolling its arsenal through Red Square during this year’s Victory Day parade, which is supposed to be a celebration of Russia’s greatest military achievements.

Even more humiliating was Ukraine’s use of missiles and drones to attack energy facilities and other sites in Moscow and St. Petersburg, as well as additional targets hundreds of miles from the war’s frontlines. Ukraine has shattered the illusion for many Russians that the war could never arrive on their doorstep.

Ukraine’s successes have become so obvious that, on June 28, Putin was forced to acknowledge them on Russian state television. He admitted that the recent strikes, which he referred to only as “terrorist attacks on our territory,” have created shortages that force the government to import more fuel as repairs are made. He is publicly signaling that he knows Russians face hardships, which are compounded by internet disruptions stemming from the Kremlin’s attempt to force the public onto state-controlled sites.

Russia’s broader economy, now heavily focused on supporting the war effort, faces headwinds, too. The central bank has warned that growth this year could fall to as low as 0.5 percent.

Yet Putin still hopes Russia can win a war of attrition. In recent days, state media has made much of military advances on the city of Kostyantynivka, which might serve as a gateway to broader territorial gains in eastern Ukraine. Putin is still betting that US President Donald Trump will actively undermine the resupply of Ukraine’s military and further disrupt NATO, and perhaps hoping that elections next year in France, the UK, Italy, and some key German states could upend European support for Ukraine as well.

However, Russia’s battlefield performance over the past several years suggests that any further gains will continue to come slowly and at a high human and economic cost. Russian casualties (killed and disabled) now outnumber new recruits. And Trump seems to have lost interest in helping Russia, particularly as successful Ukrainian strikes have changed the war.

Moreover, Europeans have become more serious about longer-term investments in their own defense. Although big elections loom across the continent, they remain many months away, and populist victories that reduce support for Ukraine are no sure thing.

Despite the setbacks and embarrassments, there is scant evidence that Putin is in trouble at home. Some Russian media have hinted at growing public frustration with the war, but there remains no alternative to Putin’s leadership, and he still appears uninterested in peace talks.

Thus, Europeans and Russia’s nearest neighbors worry about what Putin might do were he genuinely backed into a corner. We are sure to see a continued expansion of Russian missile strikes at Ukrainian cities — like the major July 2 drone and missile attack that killed at least 27 people in Kyiv. We can also expect more military provocations involving NATO countries, particularly with drones that Europeans remain unprepared to handle. Last year’s arson attacks against property linked to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and last month’s episode in which a Russian warship fired warning shots at a British yacht in the English Channel, offer hints of what may be coming.

If Ukraine can continue to disrupt Crimea, strike more targets in the heart of Russia, frustrate Russia’s frontline forces, and pile more pressure on Russia’s hobbled economy, an isolated, aging, and frustrated Putin may decide he needs a game-changing attack.

The use of a tactical nuclear weapon in Ukraine, a direct frontal assault on the former Soviet republics of Latvia and Estonia (now NATO members), and major cyberattacks on European or US targets remain extremely unlikely for now. However, aggressive provocations against NATO countries, even if they fall short of clear acts of war, can still create serious security, economic, and political risks. If Putin concludes that his political or physical survival is in danger, his willingness to gamble will grow quickly.

Ian Bremmer, founder and president of Eurasia Group and GZERO Media, is a member of the Executive Committee of the UN High-level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence.

Copyright: Project Syndicate

title: The dangerous risk of a  Putin escalation


content_text:
The US likes to think of itself as a young country, the product of a revolution against throne, altar and aristocracy that is based on the promise of the future (the pursuit of happiness) rather than the claims of the past. Even the US’ conservatives are revolutionary: Whereas Winston Churchill liked to say, over a whisky and cigar, that he preferred the past to the present and the present to the future, Ronald Reagan frequently quoted Tom Paine’s adage that “we have it in our power to begin the world over again.”

Yet, at 250 years old, the US is, in fact, an old country, with the world’s oldest written constitution (1787), its oldest active major political party (the Democrats) and its oldest federal system. The British Labour Party is forever revamping Britain’s upper chamber, the House of Lords, most recently this spring by ejecting the 92 remaining hereditary peers. The Americans have not seriously reformed the Senate since 1913, when they decided that senators should be elected directly by the people rather than chosen by state legislatures. Contrast the US with its fellow product of the 18th century Enlightenment, France, which has had five republics, two monarchies, one directory, a consulate, a couple of empires and a fascist regime, or with its fellow product of the anti-colonial struggle, India, which was only founded in 1947.

Americans love to visit Europe and gawp at charming villages and ancient ruins, but the historical hearts of Boston and Washington feel much older than those of many European cities because they were spared wartime bombing. The first US settlers arrived when James I was on the throne and England was not yet Britain. The Declaration of Independence was signed a century before the birth of either Germany or Italy. “The youth of America is their oldest tradition,” Oscar Wilde once quipped. “It has been going on for 300 years.”

An old country is acquiring an aging elite. US President Donald Trump is the second consecutive president to celebrate his 80th birthday in the White House. Senators and congresspeople can cling onto power into their nineties, regardless of whether they are still fit for duty: Kay Granger, a representative from Texas, served despite living in a retirement community and navigating “dementia issues,” and California Senator Dianne Feinstein died in office at ninety and often seemed not to understand what was happening around her. If the president, vice president and House speaker were killed in some tragedy, the presidency would pass to the 92-year-old Chuck Grassley. Academic chroniclers like to smirk at these arrangements, but Ivy League faculties are themselves gerontocracies in which promotion is awarded one death at a time.

The graying of the US’ leaders is partly the fault of the vast Baby Boom generation, which gave the US its youthful vitality in the 1960s, but is now slowing the country down. However, it is also a result of the overall aging of the population, with the share of Americans aged 65 or older nearly doubling over the past 50 years.

This older populace must navigate a bloated bureaucracy and decaying infrastructure. One reason the federal tax code is such a monster is that it has been accumulating convolutions since 1913. By contrast, Estonia created a flat tax system in 1994 that allows you to file your taxes on a smartphone. Most bridges are supposed to have a lifespan of 50 years, yet the average age of a US bridge is 47 years. To fly from Beijing to New York City’s JFK airport is to fly back in time to a world of dingy furniture, snaking queues, dysfunctional train links and snail-paced traffic.

Yet in one important respect the US is providing exactly what the Founding Fathers wanted: the gift of perpetual youth. The US is still a land where students such as Larry Page, Sergey Brin and Mark Zuckerberg can found companies and, 20 years later, find themselves among the richest people in the world.

The contrast between the US and Europe here is astonishing (the contrast with China is less astonishing and less significant since it has only been a capitalist power for a few decades). The average age of the top 10 US companies by market valuation is less than 50 years, whereas the average age of the top 10 European companies is more than a century. The Draghi Report on EU Competitiveness said that Europe cannot claim a single company set up from scratch in the past 50 years that is worth more than 100 billion euros (US$114.4 billion), while six US companies with a value more than 1 trillion euros were set up in the same period. Andrew McAfee, an economist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, suggests that this might understate the US-EU gap: If you lower the bar and look at companies founded in the last 50 years that are worth more than US$10 billion, you discover that the US’ population of such arrivistes is worth US$30 trillion compared with Europe’s US$430 billion.

There are lots of reasons for this difference: the size of the US market, unified by common institutions and language; the depth of its capital markets; the generosity of its bankruptcy laws; the quality of its management; the spirit of enterprise. However, it surely has much to do with the political wisdom of the Founding Fathers. The Constitution provides the perfect framework in which creative destruction can do its work: not only iron-clad guarantees of property rights to give people confidence that their labor and innovation would be rewarded, but also a system of checks and balances to prevent interest groups from driving the successful out of existence, a constant danger in a democracy.

The aging of the US’ political system is inevitably creating discontent, particularly among younger voters. Progressive Democrats are flirting with ideas about expanding the size of the Supreme Court, abolishing the Electoral College and, in general, removing restraints on the power of arithmetic majorities. There is certainly a case for reform when it comes to some personnel questions: perhaps an upper age limit for presidents or senators or at least a cognitive test at a certain age.

However, we should be careful about taking the spirit of reform to constitutional structures. The US constitutional system has pulled off the remarkable trick of allowing the US capitalist system to remain the most youthful and dynamic in the world. Once you have discovered a formula for creating perpetual youth it is best not to fiddle with it.

Adrian Wooldridge is the global business columnist for Bloomberg Opinion. A former writer at The Economist, he is author of The Aristocracy of Talent: How Meritocracy Made the Modern World. This column reflects the personal views of the author and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

title: Happy birthday to the world’s oldest young country


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OH YEAH? Canada’s claims to be the better team have a shaky basis in truth after a 3-0 drubbing that punched them out of the tournament, Morocco’s coach said

Morocco are heading back to the World Cup quarter-finals, and coach Mohamed Ouahbi believes his team has established itself among soccer’s elite.

Azzedine Ounahi scored twice to lead Morocco to a 3-0 win over Canada in the Round of 16 to make the country the first African nation to reach the quarter-finals more than once.

“We are no longer a surprise,” Ouahbi said through an interpreter. “Now when people talk about Morocco we’re a major contender and it’s a great source of pride. I think it’s only the beginning and I hope we continue to have runs like this.”

Morocco players celebrate after their second goal against Canada in Houston on Saturday. Photo: AFP

Despite already making history in this World Cup, Morocco have much higher goals.

“We want to keep going,” Ouahbi said. “We don’t want to stop.”

It is Morocco’s second straight appearance in the final eight after becoming the first African team to reach the semi-finals in 2022.

“We are so proud to represent Africa because it’s a continent with a lot of talent and Africa deserves to be in the best level in football,” goalkeeper Yassine Bounou said.

Neither team was able to break through until Ounahi scored in the 50th minute, and again in the 82nd.

Soufiane Rahimi added a goal in the final minute of stoppage time.

Morocco meet France, which beat Paraguay the same day, on Thursday in Foxborough, Massachusetts.

The loss ends a historic run for World Cup co-host Canada, who won their first-ever knockout round game, beating South Africa 1-0 to reach Saturday’s game. The country was playing in the World Cup for just the third time and the run enchanted a nation that is normally far more interested in hockey than soccer.

Canada coach Jesse Marsch shared his postgame message to the team.

“I told them that I was proud of them and I challenged them to understand that we can play like this all the time against the best teams in the world,” he said. “We can be better on the day. And then the challenge is, can we hold that standard for 90 minutes?”

Morocco, No. 7 in the FIFA rankings entering the tournament, punched out the Netherlands in a penalty shootout to reach the Round of 16 and send the country to its earliest World Cup exit.

Marsch lauded how his team performed against a squad of Morocco’s caliber and how Canada controlled the match for much of the day.

“The way we pushed, the way we were in the match, the quality we showed, the overall impact in the match, we were better,” he said. “We were better than the No. 7 team in the world today.”

Ouahbi had a strong response when told of those comments.

“In terms of intensity they were good,” he said. “They were good for 98 minutes. Were they better? It’s hard to say. It takes some nerve to say that when you lose 3-nil.”

Canada had a couple of chances to score. Jonathan David had a free-kick from outside the box in the 78th minute, but his shot sailed over the crossbar.

Just after that, Tajon Buchanan’s shot from about 30 yards was stopped with a diving save from Bounou. Bounou, who was born in Canada to Moroccan parents, had three saves.

The victory set off a huge celebration for Morocco’s fans back home.

Within minutes, thousands poured into the streets of Casablanca, Morocco’s largest city. Horns echoed as supporters climbed onto car roofs, waving flags and chanting.

Traffic ground to a halt along the Corniche Boulevard, one of the city’s main avenues, where ecstatic Atlas Lions supporters danced, set off fireworks and waved flares. Other major boulevards across Casablanca were jammed with jubilant fans.

Canada reached the Round of 16 despite missing star Alphonso Davies for the majority of the tournament because of a hamstring injury. The Bayern Munich player logged only 15 minutes as a substitute in the victory over South Africa but was not available against Morocco.

“His hamstring didn’t feel right,” Marsch said. “We were hoping that by the time he woke up this morning that he would feel better, but he didn’t.”

It was an extremely physical match with eight yellow cards being issued. Both teams received four.

This game was a rematch from the last World Cup when Morocco beat Canada 2-1 in the group stage. Morocco went on to finish fourth.

title: Morocco headed to quarter-finals


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A Grand Canyon river rafting guide who aimed to become the first American woman to row across the mid-Pacific solo has completed a record-breaking journey from California to Hawaii.

Hundreds gathered to cheer on Kelsey Pfendler as she pulled into a Honolulu harbor Friday night on her 21-foot (6.4m) row boat, Lily, after almost a month and a half at sea, local media reported.

Pfendler, who launched from Monterey, California, in May, set out to become the first American, youngest and fastest woman to solo the roughly 3,900km journey, according to her website. Hundreds of thousands followed her journey on social media, where she shared the highs, lows and quirks of her trek in videos taken as she rowed alone across the vast ocean.

Professional rafting guide Kelsey Pfendler has completed her journey from California to Hawaii. Photo grab from Kelsey Pfendler/Instagram

Pfendler appears to have broken both the men’s and women’s speed records, according to records maintained by Ocean Rowing Society International, which adjudicates ocean-rowing achievements for Guinness World Records. The organization did not immediately respond to requests for comment about her finish.

The rowing society’s online records showed Saturday morning that Pfendler finished in just under 44 days, faster than the female record holder’s 86 days or the male record holder’s 52 days as recorded by both the society and Guinness World Records.

Pfendler’s video diaries talk about the logistics of her passage and survival on the ocean. She detailed challenges including blistered hands, the struggle to sleep amid stiff winds and the mental and physical struggle of coping with unfavorable currents and wind.

She talked about how she cooked, protected her skin from the sun, washed her clothes and made fresh water.

In some videos, her voice cracked with emotion. In others, she poked fun at her own forehead hat tan line and joked about the importance of caffeine pills.

Pfendler’s website says she has been a professional raft guide since she was 18 and has spent the last eight years leading trips along the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon.

“I just love boats in the middle of nowhere,” she said in one video.

In a video posted as she neared Oahu, she reflected on the meaning of her accomplishment and what she hoped others would take from it.

“If any part of this made at least one person feel a little bit more powerful in their own skin, I couldn’t ask for anything else and I’m happy,” she said. “Think about trying to find your own big, hard, scary thing. You might not think that you are strong enough to finish it right now, but you’re definitely strong enough to start it, and you’ll find everything else along the way. I’m going to go finish my big, hard scary thing.”

title: Woman solos trans-Pacific row


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Japan believe they have made “a big statement” by beating Italy in their Nations Championship opener and are confident they can take that momentum into next weekend’s clash with Ireland.

Japan pulled off an impressive 27-10 victory over the Italians in Tokyo on Saturday and are travelling to Australia to face Ireland in Newcastle.

Japan host France in Tokyo the weekend after, and flanker Ben Gunter thinks their flying start to the competition has not gone unnoticed.

Japan’s Ben Gunter charges Italy’s Tommaso Di Bartolomeo during the Nations Championship rugby match between Japan and Italy in Tokyo on Saturday. Photo: AFP

“This is a big statement for Japan,” said Gunter, who scored the third of Japan’s three tries in front of more than 20,000 fans. “Italy are a very strong team. Their performances recently have been unreal, so for us to start this new tournament with that statement, I can’t be happier.”

Japan were without coach Eddie Jones, who was serving the last game of a four-match suspension from the Japan Rugby Football Union for abusing match officials earlier this year.

Forwards coach Neal Hatley took his place and oversaw a confident performance despite conceding an early try to the Italians.

Captain Warner Dearns and full-back Takuro Matsunaga scored tries as Japan frustrated Italy in defence as well as attack.

“We always have an unreal attack, we always have points in us,” Gunter said. “So if I can try to help in those crunch times and stop them from scoring, I feel like that’s our way forward because our attack is so good.”

Japan started the match with uncapped university student Ryunosuke Ito at fly-half.

The 21-year-old gave a composed performance, outshining his more experienced Italian counterpart Paolo Garbisi.

“It was my first time wearing the Japan jersey and the noise of all the fans did put some pressure on me,” Ito said. “But I felt their support and it gave me strength.”

Italy coach Gonzalo Quesada, who starred in the number 10 shirt for Argentina in the 1990s and 2000s, praised Ito’s performance.

Quesada called Ito “a player of the future.”

“Ito being so young, coming from university level and playing his first Test match, we thought it could be a bit tough for him,” he said. “I think he showed a lot of character. We have been analysing him and I think he is a really interesting player.”

Quesada was less satisfied with his own team’s performance, coming off the back of a Six Nations campaign that saw them beat England for the first time and match their best by finishing fourth.

They were unable to cope with Japan’s pressure despite scoring in the fifth minute.

Italy travel to Wellington to face New Zealand next weekend before playing Australia in Perth.

Quesada said he would “have to see how we can improve.”

“We have only two trainings before we play against the All Blacks, we have a long travel now from Tokyo,” he said. “We have to improve a lot with what we do with the ball to try to compete and have a better game against New Zealand.”

title: Japan rugby feels good about game


content_text:
Kylian Mbappe of France scored his 19th career World Cup goal, finding the net on a penalty-kick in the Round of 16 against Paraguay on Saturday and drawing within one goal of record holder Lionel Messi of Argentina.

Mbappe stutter-stepped on his way to his 19th goal in 19 World Cup appearances, beating Paraguay goalkeeper Orlando Gill in the 70th minute to break a scoreless tie. France’s captain was awarded the penalty when Diego Gomez was called for tripping after a video review.

“I’ve said from the first day that he had the spirit. He gave all the athletic efforts,” France coach Didier Deschamps said after Les Bleus won 1-0. “He’s a great top-notch player on the pitch. But when he speaks, he speaks for the entire group.”

France’s Kylian Mbappe, left, celebrates with teammates after winning the World Cup match against Paraguay in Philadelphia on Saturday. Photo: AFP

It was the seventh goal of this tournament for Mbappe, matching Messi in the race for the Golden Boot for the World Cup’s top scorer. Mbappe won that award four years ago in Qatar, but Messi and Argentina beat France in the final.

Mbappe is the only player to score at least three goals in the knockout stage of three World Cups. On Saturday, he endured against perhaps the most physical opponent he has faced in this tournament.

Tempers flared in the first half when Andres Cubas took down Mbappe and the teams briefly pushed and shoved each other. Matias Galarza also threw his right elbow into Mbappe and sent him crashing to the grass.

After Mbappe ignored Gill’s attempt at a postgame handshake, the goalkeeper threw a ball at the France player’s back.

“We knew what kind of match it was going to be. We can also get our hands dirty, we know how to do it,” Mbappe said in French. “We know how to play ugly football. Guess they were thinking we were going to show up in tuxedos, but we were ready. Even at that kind of game, we were better than them. That’s their style of football. There’s no right or wrong way to play the game. They tried to beat us that way, but we won.”

The victory cleared the way for Mbappe to continue chasing Messi’s career goals record.

Messi scored his 20th career World Cup goal in Argentina’s 3-2 win over Cabo Verde on Friday night. Messi also has goals in a record eight consecutive World Cup games.

Norway’s Erling Haaland and England’s Harry Kane are next in the Golden Boot race with five goals each.

If there is a tie in the Golden Boot standings when the tournament ends, FIFA uses assists as the first tiebreaker and fewest minutes played as the second tiebreaker. Mbappe has a 2-0 lead over Messi in assists.

title: Mbappe leads France onward in Philadelphia


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Football Australia have thrown their support behind under-fire coach Tony Popovic despite some calls in their World Cup penalty shootout loss to Egypt that saw them fail to clear a knockout round once again. Popovic drew criticism from high-profile former Australia players for substituting first-choice goalkeeper Patrick Beach deep into extra-time in the clash in Dallas on Friday as penalties loomed. He instead turned to Mathew Ryan, who failed to pull off a save and Egypt won 4-2 on spot-kicks.

The result left Australia still searching for a first victory in the knockout stages of a World Cup.

Popovic also came under scrutiny for entrusting 18-year-old Lucas Herrington with one of the penalties, which he missed.

Australia head coach Tony Popovic reacts during the World Cup match against Egypt in Dallas on Friday. Photo:EPA

“Every fan will think about what can be done better,” Football Australia chief executive Martin Kugeler told Australian media in Dallas. “But the coaching staff and Tony Popovic are always in the best place to judge in that moment what is needed for the team.

“In hindsight, everyone always knows better, but you have to make those calls in the moment based on what you’ve seen in training, what is your impression in talking to the players,” he said. “So Tony Popovic has absolutely our confidence.”

Popovic was appointed in 2024 and guided Australia to their sixth successive World Cup.

His contract was extended in the days before the tournament through to the 2027 Asian Cup, which is due to be held in Saudi Arabia early next year.

“We’re absolutely happy about the decision to extend this contract,” Kugeler said. “He is the right person to now take this group into the next major tournament and apply all the experiences, all the learnings from this tournament into the next major tournament.”

title: Socceroos coach draws criticism following knockout


title: Aspirational

content_text: UAE Team Emirates riders attend the team presentation ceremony ahead of the 113th edition of the Tour de France cycling race near the Sagrada Familia Basilica in Barcelona on Friday.


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EYES ON TEHRAN:  Ali Khamenei’s funeral is being viewed outside Iran as a test of support for the regime following mass protests before the war in January

Prayers were held yesterday over the casket of late Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei, the second day of funeral ceremonies that have drawn huge crowds to pay their final respects in Tehran.

Khamenei ruled the Islamic republic from 1989 until he was killed aged 86 in an airstrike on the first day of the US-Israeli war with Iran on Feb. 28.

Yesterday’s service at Tehran’s Grand Mosalla complex was led by prominent Shiite cleric Ja’far Sobhani, a 97-year-old scholar who teaches in seminaries at the holy city of Qom.

People pray during the days-long funeral ceremonies for the slain Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei and members of his family in Tehran yesterday. Photo: AP

Khamenei’s son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei, who is said to have been wounded in the Feb. 28 attack, has not appeared in public since being named supreme leader and was notably absent from the funeral prayers.

The late supreme leader’s other three sons, Masoud, Mostafa and Meysam, were in attendance.

Yesterday was declared a public holiday across Iran, and later in the day, Ali Khamenei’s body was to be moved from the Grand Mosalla complex where it is lying in state in preparation for processions through the capital today.

The vast religious complex and surrounding streets were packed with mourners yesterday morning.

With temperatures set to exceed 35°C, mourners carrying Iranian flags and portraits of Ali Khamenei, as they made their way to the Grand Mosalla, were handed refreshments.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian attended the ceremony alongside senior officials including Iranian Parliamentary Speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, state television footage showed.

Ali Khamenei’s coffin, draped in the Iranian flag and topped with his black turban, was placed alongside the coffins of four relatives also killed in the February strikes, including an infant granddaughter.

Authorities have said they expect more than 10 million people to take part in ceremonies in Tehran.

After five weeks of intense hostilities, the Middle East war is on hold after a ceasefire and an initial accord with the US, but Washington and Tehran have warned they are ready to resume fighting at any time.

Ali Khamenei’s funeral is being viewed outside Iran as a test of support for the government following mass protests before the war in January that rights groups say were quelled by a crackdown that left thousands dead.

“What is observed today in the emotions, tears, and passionate presence of the people in various scenes is the most telling sign of his position among the Iranian nation and the free people of the world,” Pezeshkian said in a speech on Saturday, accusing Israel in particular of acting as a “destabilizing factor” in the Middle East.

“Muslims have shown that they will not surrender to oppression and bullying,” he added.

title: Prayers offered for Iran’s Ali Khamenei


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WARTIME DIPLOMACY: Zelenskiy and Putin spoke separately with US President Donald Trump about the conflict in Ukraine ahead of a NATO summit this week

Ukraine on Saturday denied Moscow’s announcement that Russian forces had captured the strategic Ukrainian city of Kostyantynivka, a stronghold for Kyiv’s troops in the eastern Donetsk region and a key target for the Kremlin.

A Ukrainian army spokesman said the city remained under its control, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy dismissed Moscow’s announcement as “a lie,” with the dueling claims coming after Russia also said Ukrainian drones had struck its second-most populous city, St Petersburg.

“The situation remains difficult,” Ukrainian army spokesman Andriy Kovalyov said, but added that Kostyantynivka “is under the control of the Ukrainian Defence Forces.”

A Ukrainian soldier follows an uncrewed ground vehicle as he evacuates a resident who was injured by a Russian drone strike in Druzhkivka on Friday, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine. Photo: Press Service of the 93rd Kholodnyi Yar Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces via Reuters

On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin, wearing a military uniform, had thanked troops for seizing Kostyantynivka, a town with a pre-war population of 78,000 that Moscow has been trying to take control over for months.

The army has been sending in small groups of soldiers to infiltrate and secure positions, a method previously used to capture the Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk in late last year. Kostyantynivka is one of the final obstacles on the route to the major Ukrainian-held cities of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk; capturing them is the Kremlin’s ultimate goal in the Donbas.

Kovalyov on Saturday said that “Ukrainian defenders continue to hold their positions along the designated defensive lines.”

He said that small groups of Russian troops have been infiltrating the town, but insisted that fighting was ongoing.

However, Russian Ministry of Defense said: “Russian troops are in all parts of the town — from the southern to northern outskirts.”

Zelenskiy called the claim “just another Russian lie.”

“If Kostyantynivka were under Russian control, then perhaps Putin would have no problem meeting me there to find a diplomatic way to finally end this war,” the Ukrainian president said on social media.

Putin has repeatedly turned down talks with Zelenskiy to end more than four years of war, saying Moscow intends to capture the rest of eastern Ukraine by force.

Zelenskiy and Putin spoke separately with US President Donald Trump about the conflict in Ukraine ahead of a NATO summit in Ankara this week, with Zelenskiy writing on social media that there was a “real prospect to put an end to this war, and America’s resolve is decisive.”

The claims came as Russia said on Saturday Ukrainian drones hit an oil terminal in St Petersburg, Putin’s hometown, as well as striking a port near Finland and falling on the historical Peterhof complex without causing damage.

Moscow vowed to respond, saying it downed almost 500 Ukrainian drones and 10 of Kyiv’s Flamingo missiles overnight. The Ukrainian attack came after a Russian strike on Kyiv this week killed 30 people, amid other strikes.

title: Kyiv and Moscow deny each other’s claims


title: Rutte faces challenges at NATO summit in Ankara

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Since he started work as NATO secretary-general almost two years ago, Mark Rutte has spent much of his time trying to keep the US anchored to the world’s biggest military alliance, employing outright flattery to dissuade US President Donald Trump from acting on threats to abandon it.

However, the goalposts keep shifting, raising the stakes ahead of this week’s summit in Turkey.

Initially, it was about money. Trump has long railed against NATO allies for spending too small a fraction of their national budgets on defense. However, those problems were addressed at their summit last year, when US allies committed to invest as much as the US, in gross domestic product terms.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, right, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pose for a photo during a NATO summit in The Hague on June 25 last year. Photo: Reuters

NATO’s real problem now is turning that money into military capabilities, particularly as European countries worry about a possible attack from Russia.

Still, Rutte tried to put to bed any lingering concerns at a White House meeting last month, with a new pitch using a chart labeled the “The Trump Trillion” in gold letters — showing US$1.2 trillion in spending by European allies and Canada since 2017.

However, Trump appeared unmoved, saying he was still disappointed at some NATO allies’ refusal to join the Iran war, which he had launched alongside Israel without consulting them.

“We don’t need their money — we don’t need anything,” Trump said. “I just want loyalty.”

Trump said he might have skipped the upcoming summit entirely were it not being hosted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. It is a sign that even Erdogan and Rutte — foreign leaders Trump seems to hold in rare esteem — would have their work cut out for them in keeping the summit on track.

Historically, the prime tasks of NATO’s top civilian official — always a European, never an American — have been to encourage consensus in an organization that makes its decisions unanimously, and to speak on behalf of all 32 member countries.

However, during both of Trump’s terms, Rutte and his predecessor, Jens Stoltenberg, have dedicated a huge amount of energy just to keep the US inside their alliance.

Trump has threatened to leave NATO, dallied with pulling US troops out of Europe and vowed to take over the island of Greenland — a semiautonomous part of ally Denmark. He has cast doubt over whether he would defend another member not spending enough on their military, eroding trust.

Rutte’s approach has been heavy on flattery. Last month’s carefully choreographed pitch in the Oval Office — with props redolent of a US flag — laid down a new marker, even for a man heavily criticized for likening Trump to a “daddy.”

The charts showed tens of thousands of US jobs were being created and a backlog of US$300 billion in European orders for military equipment — all thanks to the “leader of the free world,” Rutte said.

He pushed back, gently, on Trump’s complaints that NATO did not support the US against Iran, saying that up to 5,000 US planes took off from bases in Europe before an April ceasefire.

NATO cannot function without its biggest and most powerful ally. Europe is being pushed to fend for itself even as Russia, the historical reason for the alliance, poses a greater threat.

Last month, the Pentagon surprised its NATO allies by announcing that it was scaling back the number of troops, warships, aircraft and drones it would provide if one of them came under attack. Trump has also sent conflicting messages about whether US troop numbers would be lowered or increased.

The cutbacks and mixed messaging has undermined unity at the alliance, just as Russia has been probing Europe’s defenses with drone flights near military bases across multiple countries, a study released on Thursday showed.

Each summit is meant to showcase the commitment to collective security — the all-for-one, one-for-all pledge enshrined in Article 5 of NATO’s treaty. It has only been invoked once, when allies came to America’s aid after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

The last NATO summit was held in The Hague, the hometown of Rutte, a former Dutch prime minister. The Dutch royal family hosted dinner, and Trump stayed overnight at the king’s palace.

Rutte got the allies behind a major defense spending pledge, and Trump left a happy man, calling his NATO partners a “nice group of people.”

This year, the summit would be hosted by Erdogan, another key NATO member with an independent streak. His close ties to Trump might keep the US president at the table, but it is unlikely to mend the rifts.


content_text:
US President Donald Trump’s visit to Ankara for the NATO summit could help secure Turkey’s acquisition of dozens of fighter jet engines, but would not resolve the F-35 dispute that has soured ties, analysts say.

The summit that would take place tomorrow and on Wednesday, and be hosted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, would bring together leaders from the military alliance’s 32 member states.

Last month, Trump promised to make Erdogan “very happy” when asked about Turkey looking to secure F110 jet engines and being readmitted to the F-35 program. Analysts said it would likely mean freeing up fighter jet engines Turkey wants to use in its flagship Kaan stealth fighter project.

A waiter puts the finishing touches on a table, which has been symbolically reserved and prepared for US President Donald Trump, at a restaurant in Ankara on Saturday ahead of this week’s NATO summit. Photo: Reuters

“It’s likely to be the green light for the F110 GE [General Electric] engines for the Kaan fighter plane, about 40 of them. There had been obstacles to that supply and very possibly those are now being removed,” said Sinan Ulgen, director of the Istanbul-based Edam think tank.

“Turkey has produced a couple of prototypes which are flying with the F110 engine, but it has been waiting for the supply of additional engines to increase the number of Kaan platforms,” Ulgen said.

Kaan is a twin-engine stealth fighter being developed by Turkish Aerospace Industries to replace the Turkish Air Force’s fleet of F-16s as Ankara seeks to join the exclusive club of nations producing fifth-generation combat aircraft, notably the US, China and Russia.

Although Turkey would eventually fit the fighter with its own domestically-produced engine — the F110s lacking stealth capability — that project is still in the preliminary design phase, Turkish Minister of National Defense Yasar Guler said in September last year.

Turkey received a first batch of 10 F110s in September, and talks with the US government to acquire 80 more were “ongoing,” he said.

However, that has been held up by a lack of political clearance linked to Turkey’s 2017 acquisition of a Russian S-400 missile defence system, Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan said in September last year. Infuriated, Washington expelled Turkey from its F-35 jet program in 2019 and imposed Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) sanctions a year later, hampering Turkish defense projects and souring ties.

“The CAATSA issue must be resolved. The US needs to take steps both regarding the F-35 and the engines for Kaan. Kaan’s engines are currently awaiting approval in the US Congress,” Fidan said, his remarks raising eyebrows back home, as Turkey had said the Kaan would be entirely domestically produced.

Ankara’s F-35 exclusion has forced it to refocus on self-sufficiency.

“Some argue we should not buy F-35s and invest that money into our own fifth-generation fighter jet program, and that’s exactly what’s happening with President Trump’s decision to export jet engines,” said Ozgur Unluhisarcikli, head of the German Marshall Fund in Ankara. “Without those engines, Turkey cannot produce the Kaan jet.”

With a Kaan delivery date many years away, only Indonesia has placed an order, signing a US$10 billion contract to buy 48 fighters, although the NATO summit could generate further interest, Ulgen said.

“Looking at the failure of the German-French FCAS [Future Combat Air System] initiative, there may be some interest. Spain could potentially become a partner, and there may be interest from the Gulf as well... But there are more obstacles to be overcome for it to become a credible offer on the international stage,” he said.

Experts expected little progress on the lingering F-35 dispute: For US Congress to lift the CAATSA sanctions, Ankara would have to get rid of the S-400 — but selling it to a third country would require Moscow’s approval, and returning it to the Russians was not on the cards.

“The US administration might wish to ... put this issue behind it and sell Turkey some F-35, but that will go to Congress and changing the congressional decision won’t be easy,” said Professor Mustafa Aydin, an international relations expert at Istanbul’s Kadir Has University.

However, Matthew Bryza, a retired US envoy and former senior White House and US Department of State official, said Trump could move to resolve the matter as the F-35 was an executive decision which he could easily reverse.

“President Trump can certainly declare that the S-400/F-35 dispute is finished. It’s the CAATSA sanctions that require congressional action. Whether he can persuade Congress to do that, depends on how much political capital he’s willing to expend,” he said of a move that could be “politically costly in the lead up to the midterm elections” due to Turkey’s opponents in the Greek and Armenian diaspora.

title: Ankara eyes F110 jet engines as Trump visits


title: China frees jailed pastor Jin Mingri after Trump request

content_text:
China has released the founder of an underground church who has been detained since October last year, his church and family said yesterday, after US President Donald Trump raised his case with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平).

Jin Mingri (金明日) is the founder of Zion Church, one of China’s unregistered churches that some Christians choose to worship at instead of state-sanctioned ones regulated by the Chinese government.

Jin was detained along with other church members on Oct. 10 last year on “suspicion of the illegal use of information networks.”

Pastor Jin Mingri speaks during an interview in Beijing on Aug. 1, 2018. Photo: AP

Trump raised his case when he visited Xi in May, and had said the Chinese president would “strongly consider” releasing him.

On Saturday, rights group ChinaAid said in a statement that Jin had arrived in Los Angeles after being released from detention in China.

The pastor was told by Chinese officials that his release “resulted from discussions between US President Donald J Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, and was presented as a goodwill gesture coinciding with America’s Independence Day,” the statement said.

“We thank God for this tremendous miracle,” Jin’s daughter, Grace Jin Drexel (金婷雅), said in a statement. “We hope this is a signal of a positive turn for people of faith in China and relations between our two nations.”

Her statement thanked Trump and his administration “for their tremendous leadership.”

The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs was contacted for comment.

The Chinese Communist Party has historically regarded organized religion with suspicion, and under Xi, has tightened scrutiny of unofficial groups.

Authorities have been cracking down on unregistered churches in the past few months. Last month, an Early Rain Covenant Church service in southwestern Sichuan Province was raided, and two leaders detained. That followed the detention in January of several other leading members of Early Rain.

The same week, Yayang church in eastern Zhejiang Province was scaffolded and had its cross removed.

Eight of the Zion Church members detained in October last year are still being held, the church said.

Zion Church was founded in 2007 in Beijing. It grew to 1,500 members before shuttering in 2018 under pressure from Chinese authorities.

The church maintained an online presence that flourished during the COVID-19 pandemic, amassing a following across 40 Chinese cities.

Jin’s family relocated abroad after 2018, but he returned to China to be with the church, afterward facing a travel ban.

He has not seen most of his family, including two young sons, for more than seven years, his daughter said last year.


content_text:
Notes from Central Taiwan: Is stability possible with the PRC?How do we define stability within US-China relations when Beijing continues to call the shots?

The fundamental problem of “gray zoning” by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is that it is, by definition, the constant introduction of instability into stability. Gray zoning always takes place against a background of assumed stability. The gray zone operation, be it cable-cutting, aircraft incursions, the construction of villages across borders, the stealth occupation of bits of neighboring territory or fishing boat intrusions, is intended to violate that stability. Once gray zone operations have become normalized and a stable situation emerges, the new normal will be quickly violated by new gray zone operations.

Gray zoning as policy thus represents a commitment to permanent instability. This raises the question of whether it is possible to have stable relations with an expansionist state that is constantly upping the gray zone ante.

POLITICAL CAUTION TO THE WIND

The question of stability is important because US policymakers keep invoking it as an important goal of relations, something to work toward. In 2023, for example, the Andrew Carnegie Foundation asked a group of China experts “how to stabilize US-China relations.” The answers given were varied, from increasing people-to-people relations, to setting up communication channels, to each side declaring what it wanted and then using that as the basis for negotiations. All these things exist to a certain extent, along with the massive trade between the two sides, yet there is no “stability.”

After the recent meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), the White House fact sheet described the outcome as being a “constructive relationship of strategic stability” based on “fairness and reciprocity.” In addition to understandings on various issues, it also established an entity to handle future trade issues, the US-China Board of Trade and Board of Investment, which it termed the “cornerstone” of the agreement. The US attempted to create and then institutionalize mechanisms to preserve “stability,” its usual goal.

The PRC readout of the meeting went much farther. Both sides achieved “strategic stability,” according to Xi, but Foreign Minister Wang Yi (王毅) said that stability meant not only communicating and reducing risks, but also holding competition to “proper limits,” and respecting China’s “core interests.” Wang added that the relationship should be shaped by the three US-China joint communiques. Since it does not appear likely that the US agreed to any of these things (which, in any case, mean different things to either side), what was Wang doing?

He was gray zoning. The US treats stability like an end state, an equilibrium in which objects have come to rest in a pattern that makes change difficult and undesirable for either side. The PRC, by contrast, treats “stability” as an opportunity for staking out further gains, as the opponent is in a resting state which it, deluded, believes will persist.

This was also illustrated by the phone call last week between Wang and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Wang told Rubio that the US should handle issues related to Taiwan with “the utmost caution.” He added that “a slight move on the Taiwan issue could affect the whole situation.” Taiwan was strongly emphasized, using similar language, in the PRC readout of the Trump visit. By contrast, the US readout didn’t mention Taiwan. “Washington wants economic calm; Beijing wants political caution,” as a Council on Foreign Relations piece summarized.

But Beijing doesn’t want “political caution.” It is engaging in the familiar move of “being provoked” in order to shape US responses. If a “slight move” can upset the applecart, then there is no possibility of stability. But more than that, who defines what constitutes “a slight move”? Of course, the PRC does. Who then determines when stability is upset? The PRC. There cannot be stability when one side has arrogated to itself the ability to define the terms of the relationship and determine when those terms are violated.

Why are we even asking the question of how to stabilize the relationship? What made the relationship “stable”? The US Navy, which held PRC expansionism at the water’s edge. Once the PRC acquired a large navy and was in a position to challenge US military dominance, “instability” became inevitable.

What would constitute stability? For starters, all PRC gray zoning would have to end, everywhere along its borders. It would have to withdraw from the South China Sea, and give up its claim to Taiwan, Okinawa and other nearby islands. The cause of “instability” in Asia is not the US presence, but the rise of the PRC and its expansionism. When that stops, so will the instability.

The problem of PRC expansionism is central to the loss of stability, yet one can peruse report after report, essay after essay, without ever seeing that word used forthrightly. The problem of achieving “stability” with the PRC is not a problem of the relationship per se, but of the way experts in the US fail to identify the problem.

PHASE TWO

An illuminating piece at War on the Rock by Zenel Garcia mines PRC writings to see how it understands “stability.” Garcia observes that “China’s premier foreign policy think tank” is the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, the research and analysis arm of the PRC Ministry of State Security, whose evaluations and recommendations are used at the highest levels. Its reporting describes the current US-PRC situation as the product of a strategy in which struggle produces cooperation on terms favorable to Beijing. “Treating that stabilization as evidence of strategic convergence, rather than as a single stage within a longer competition,” Garcia says, “would be a misreading worth correcting.”

The institute’s report is based on the central analytical concept of the “strategic stalemate.” This is, Garcia describes, “the precise vocabulary” that Mao Zedong (毛澤東) used in On Protracted War (論持久戰), his 1938 lectures at Yan’an, “to designate the second of three phases in a long-duration geopolitical competition between a weaker rising power and a stronger incumbent.” In this phase, neither side has a decisive advantage, and the PRC must bide its time, building up its position and weakening its foe. Finally, in the third stage, the “weaker” side can go on the counteroffensive and win.

Garcia’s reading of the PRC is essential to understanding how it will treat “stability”: as an opportunity to engage in phase two behavior: “Build strength, exhaust the adversary, and shift the underlying balance of force.” Xi Jinping’s announcement that both sides had agreed to “strategic stability” “maps precisely onto what the On Protracted War framework prescribes for Phase Two,” Garcia concludes, because “strategic stability” is equivalent to the “strategic stalemate” that Mao described.

Gray zoning, at every level from nibbling at territory to airspace incursions to engaging in cyber warfare, is a key tactic in this strategy. It is in fact diagnostic, signaling what phase we are in the three-phase system Mao laid out nearly a century ago.

Perhaps when the PRC stops gray zoning, that is when we should start to fear.

Notes from Central Taiwan is a column written by long-term resident Michael Turton, who provides incisive commentary informed by three decades of living in and writing about his adoptive country. The views expressed here are his own.


content_text:
Dos & Don’ts — 連接詞

1. 從昨天下午到現在一直下雨，天還沒有放晴。

ˇ It has been raining since yesterday afternoon and it hasn’t cleared up yet.

2. 音樂學校的學生不僅學音樂，也學其他科目。

ˇ The music school students study other subjects as well as music.

ˇ The music school students study not only music but some other subjects too.

χ The music school students study music as well as some other subjects.

註︰用 as well as 連接兩個類型相似的單詞或詞組時，在它前面的一個在意義上更為強調。音樂學校學生學音樂是理所當然，強調的是也學其他科目。X as well as Y（重點在 X）＝ not only Y but also X（不僅 Y 而且 X）。

3. 你如果不努力學習，很快就要落在人家後面了。

ˇ If you don’t study hard, pretty soon you will fall behind the others.

χ If you don’t study hard, as soon as you will fall behind the others.

註︰as soon as 是從屬連接詞，表示「一件事一發生之後，另一件事立即發生」，不能當作副詞用來表示「不久」、「很快」。

4. 你看這篇報導就會明白一切。

ˇ If only you read this report, everything will be clear.

χ As long as you read this report , everything will be clear.

註︰as long as 有「只要……」之意，相當於while，它所引導的子句中的動詞往往是連繫動詞或表示延續動作的動詞。例如：

As long as you are a student here, you must observe the school rules.

As long as you persevere, you are sure to succeed in the end.

如果從屬句表示比較短暫或瞬息即逝的動作，最好不用 as long as 或 so long as，而應該用 if only。

5. 他一聽到消息，就馬上跑去看她。

ˇ As soon as he heard the news, he rushed over to see her.

χ He heard the news as soon as he rushed over to see her.

註︰不可以把從屬連接詞片語 as soon as 機械地代上中文句子中的「馬上」，as soon as 引導副詞從屬句，說明很短暫的時間。上句中 as soon as 修飾「聽到」，不是修飾「跑過去」

Exercises

A. 他不僅是我的客戶，也是我的朋友。

He is not only my ____________ but also my ____________.

1. client; friend

2. friend; client

3. guest; friend

4. friend; guest

B. 人們發覺要在工作、育兒及種種責任，乃至家庭預算之間平衡，相當不容易。

People find it hard to balance work and childcare and ____________ responsibilities ____________ their household budgets.

1. others; as long as

2. other; as well as

3. other; except for

4. the other; instead of

Answers: A. 1 B. 2

文章由書林出版公司提供：

www.bookman.com.tw

蘇正隆 — 台灣翻譯學學會前理事長、師大翻譯研究所兼任副教授; 編著《走讀自然.花言樹語》，《英語的對與錯》，《世紀病毒：必讀防疫英文知識與詞彙》...等。國家教育研究院中英雙語詞彙審議委員；研究領域為翻譯、術語及詞典編譯，從事植物與人文導覽數十年，亦曾應邀遠赴國外大學做植物人文導覽。

title: BOOKMAN BILINGUAL 雙語書林： Chinglish or Natural English? 中式英語或道地英語？


taiwan-subdivisions: 新北市 綠島 蘭嶼 琉球 宜蘭縣 基隆市 花蓮縣 恆春 桃園

content_text:
▲強颱巴威預估周五、六最接近台灣。（圖／氣象署，下同）

記者董美琪／綜合報導

強颱巴威預估10日（五）、11日（六）颱風最接近台灣，根據中央氣象署5日晚間8點最新「120小時颱風暴風侵襲機率」資料來看，北部、東北部地區受影響機率明顯升高，其中宜蘭縣達51%、基隆市50%，台北市、新北市、花蓮縣及桃園市也接近5成。

氣象署5日晚間8時資料：

強烈颱風巴威中心位置在北緯13.7度，東經147.0度，以每小時15公里速度，向西北西進行。中心氣壓900百帕，近中心最大風速每秒58公尺。

各縣市120小時颱風暴風侵襲機率方面，宜蘭縣51%最高，其次為基隆市50%、台北市及花蓮縣48%、新北市47%、桃園市46%等縣市，目前暴風侵襲機率已超過或接近5成。

氣象署指出，巴威8日前偏西北西方向行進，9日起（四）將逐漸北轉朝台灣東方至琉球海面移動，預估10日、11日最接近台灣，12日逐漸遠離，但是因為後期及強度仍有不確定性，也會影響降雨位置和程度，請多留意最新的預報資訊。

周三起基隆北海岸、東半部沿海（含綠島、蘭嶼）及恆春半島易有長浪，周四起馬祖也有長浪，各沿海風浪漸增，前往海邊的民眾請特別當心。

推薦閱讀

強颱巴威恐穿台！北市嚴陣以待 建議準備3天乾糧飲用水

title: 強颱巴威逼近！最新侵襲率「2縣市破5成」　最接近台灣時間曝光


title: 後車追撞摔傷大腿！基隆騎士辯「對方自摔」　法院認定肇逃但免刑

content_text:
▲辯稱對方自摔逕自離去，騎士涉肇逃法院認定有罪但免刑。（示意圖／達志影像）

記者郭世賢／基隆報導

基隆市一名邱姓男子2025年騎機車行經信義區東信路時，與後方陳姓女子騎乘的機車發生擦撞，陳女摔車受傷。邱男雖曾回頭查看，但未停車處理便離開現場，遭檢方依肇事逃逸罪起訴。基隆地方法院審理認為，邱男確實明知發生事故卻逕自離去，已構成肇事逃逸罪；不過，事故主因為陳女未保持安全距離追撞前車，邱男並無肇事責任，綜合情節後依法判處免刑。

判決指出，事故發生於2025年3月28日上午8時許，邱姓男子騎乘機車行經基隆市信義區東信路時，後方陳姓女子因未注意車前狀況、未保持安全距離，擦撞前方邱男所騎機車，導致自身重心不穩摔倒，造成大腿受傷。

事發後，警方調閱沿線監視器畫面發現，邱男在事故發生當下曾轉頭查看後方狀況，但並未停車查看傷者，也未採取必要救護措施，未留下聯絡方式或等候警方到場，在未徵得陳女同意下便直接騎車離去，因此遭控涉犯肇事逃逸罪。

法院審理時指出，依據監視器畫面及相關事證，邱男在事故發生後立即回頭查看，可見其已知悉兩車發生碰撞，否則無須於行車途中回頭，因此認定其主觀上已知事故發生，卻仍未依法留在現場處理，符合肇事逃逸罪構成要件。

不過，法院也採信基宜區車輛行車事故鑑定會的鑑定結果，認定本件事故肇因為陳女未保持安全距離，自後方追撞前車所致，邱男並無任何肇事過失。

法官審酌，陳女傷勢屬輕微，邱男無前科、素行良好，且並非事故肇事者，最終依相關規定認定其涉犯肇事逃逸罪，但宣告免除其刑。

taiwan-subdivisions: 基隆 基隆市 信義區


title: 強颱巴威逼近！最新侵襲率「2縣市破5成」　最接近台灣時間曝光

taiwan-subdivisions: 桃園 恆春 花蓮縣 基隆市 宜蘭縣 蘭嶼 綠島 新北市 琉球


content_text:
黃國昌蹭《Meccha Chameleon》，PO出自己模仿玩家貼牆躲藏的一系列照片，還能看到他跪趴在地。（圖翻攝自黃國昌Threads）

民眾黨主席黃國昌開蹭上月在Steam平台推出馬上全球爆紅的多人派對遊戲《超級變色龍》（Meccha Chameleon，又稱塗鴉躲貓貓），在社群PO出自己模仿玩家貼牆躲藏的一系列照片，當中竟然還能看見平時盛氣凌人的「國昌老師」跪趴在地上，引發網友熱議。

《Meccha Chameleon》是一款結合「躲貓貓」與「繪畫偽裝」的多人派對遊戲，玩家會分為躲藏者與尋找者兩隊，並在多張充滿細節的地圖中展開對決，躲藏者開局會是全身白，找到要躲的地方後，使用內建的畫筆與調色盤吸取背景的顏色，將自己偽裝融入到背景；尋找者則手持霰彈槍，在有限時間內找出偽裝的玩家。這款遊戲今年6月10日在Steam上正式推出後就引發全球熱潮，僅數週便創下千萬套的驚人銷售紀錄。

而黃國昌自然不放過這波流量，5日晚間在Threads上PO出自己模仿躲藏者的一系列照片，可以看到他特地穿得全身白，貼在民眾黨內辦公室的白牆上，擺出各種躲藏Pose，其中一張還能看到他跪趴在地上，黃國昌還附上文字「這樣真的不會被發現嗎？」

這些照片曝光後引起網友熱議，還有人用他跪趴的照片「二創」，貼出國民黨立院黨團總召傅崐萁的照片，狠狠譏諷一番，「崐萁大ㄟ：這隻很乖」、「這樣就不會被發現是國民黨的啦」、「沒有人關注你，很焦慮齁」、「流量乞丐」、「我知道這是你的小編或是幕僚建議你，大概是要貼近最近年輕人討論度很高的捉迷藏遊戲，但是你蹭的感覺不情不願，蹭的方式也很爛，最關鍵的繪圖部分也沒表現到，感覺就跟政客體驗民間疾苦然後下場作秀一樣」、「無聊，有些梗不是做了就會好笑，跟風也要跟對適合自己」、「你十二年前就開始玩這個遊戲，你忘了嗎？躲在太陽花裡面」、「這款遊戲其實很適合你，都是變色龍」。

title: 開蹭爆紅遊戲《超級變色龍》 驚見黃國昌跪趴在地 網酸：本色演出

people: 黃國昌 傅崐萁


countries: 美國 伊朗

things: 經濟 油價

title: 下半年股市有更大上漲空間 華爾街稱「很牛」提醒不要蜂擁買「這類股」

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華爾街策略師對下半年股市進一步上漲抱持預期。（彭博）

〔財經頻道／綜合報導〕今年第二季美股的表現讓華爾街對下半年股市進一步上漲抱持預期。美國雅虎財經新聞週日（5日）報導，「這是牛市」：下半年股市將有更大上漲空間。

貝爾德投資策略師羅斯梅菲爾德（Ross Mayfield）告訴雅虎財經：「我認為值得興奮的事情遠比值得擔憂的事情多」。梅菲爾德指出，在美國和伊朗停止戰鬥後，石油和汽油價格下跌，以及納斯達克綜合指數和標準普爾500指數 的韌性，都對經濟起到推動作用。

由於半導體股票大幅上漲，綜合指數剛剛經歷了六年來最強勁的一個季度，而中小型公司也表現出色。

梅菲爾德表示，很多因素都在發揮作用。這是由盈利和流動性驅動的牛市，這些因素可以讓牛市持續到今年下半年，而且在我看來，可能還會持續到2027年。

第三季開始，華爾街依然看好科技股，根據FactSet數據顯示，產業分析師預測標普500指數在未來12個月內將上漲21%。

Wedbush Securities 高級股票研究分析師Dan Ives 告訴雅虎財經：「隨著7月財報季的到來，我們必須關注人工智慧的驗證和貨幣化情況。」人工智慧的蓬勃發展預計將推動整體指數上漲，摩根大通分析師最近將年底的預測值上調至7800點。

美國週五公佈的月度就業報告弱於預期，顯示勞動市場似乎並未過熱。這緩解人們對聯準會今年可能升息以抑制通膨和放緩經濟成長的擔憂。

股價飆升記憶體和晶片股勿追高

儘管市場情緒樂觀，但策略師警告稱，在費城半導體指數 （ SOX ） 創下有史以來最佳季度業績後，不要蜂擁買入那些近幾個月來股價飆升的記憶體和晶片製造商。梅菲爾德說：「我會保持謹慎，你知道……拋物線圖表很少會橫向修正」。

一些大型科技公司大手筆支出引發的擔憂，也讓人們對「七巨頭」中的一些公司產生了疑問，這些公司歷來以強勁的自由現金流生成能力而聞名。

資深市場策略師艾德·亞德尼（Ed Yardeni）指出，投資人「正在質疑超大規模資料中心營運商在人工智慧基礎設施上的巨額投入是否最終能夠獲得回報」。與蓬勃發展的半導體產業相比，這群標誌性股票的表現一直遜色不少。

嘉信資產管理公司執行長兼首席投資長奧馬爾·阿吉拉爾（Omar Aguilar）告訴雅虎財經。他強調要分散投資，減少對大型股的超配。他說：「我們非常喜歡工業、醫療保健、材料等領域，這些領域才剛開始真正利用人工智慧架構。」

一手掌握經濟脈動 點我訂閱自由財經Youtube頻道


countries: 中國 日本 荷蘭 台灣 韓國 美國

title: 中國正撒高薪狂挖角半導體菁英 韓媒揭北京「人才黑洞」戰略

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中國正積極從世界各地招募半導體人才。（示意圖，路透）

〔財經頻道／綜合報導〕韓媒報導，中國為了因應美國對先進半導體設備的出口管制，正全力招募來自韓國、台灣及美國等地的半導體工程師，希望透過人才突破技術瓶頸，甚至祭出3倍薪資搶關鍵工程師。

韓媒《Hankyung》報導指出，尤其在AI晶片核心技術高頻寬記憶體（HBM）與先進DRAM的良率提升方面，中國希望藉由吸收全球頂尖人才，突破現有技術限制，打造所謂的「人才黑洞」戰略。如今，中國甚至將海外頂尖半導體人才視為推動國產化戰略的核心資產，也使全球半導體產業的技術與人才防線同時受到衝擊。

根據業界5日的消息，中國半導體企業為突破美國先進設備出口管制、荷蘭與日本對高階設備的限制，以及韓國、台灣在記憶體與晶圓代工領域建立的技術壁壘，正把招募人才列為最重要的發展策略。

一位業界人士表示，半導體產業最重要的不是設備，而是人才。他指出，半導體技術需要工程師花費數年、甚至數十年累積經驗，包括設備調校、良率提升、封裝技術及製程最佳化等，都高度依賴實戰經驗。

業界人士強調，「即使政府投入再多補貼與資金，要縮小最先進半導體技術的最後差距，終究還是需要頂尖人才。」因此，對中國而言，一位資深工程師的戰略價值，甚至比一台最先進的半導體設備還要高。

中國DRAM製造商長鑫存儲（CXMT）就是代表案例。CXMT是在中國政府大力扶植下成立，目的就是追趕韓國及美國在DRAM市場的技術領先地位。如今，中國政府關心的已不只是「能不能生產DRAM」，而是「能多快量產、良率有多高，以及是否能製造更先進的產品」。

CXMT目前正積極投入下一代DRAM及HBM研發，但與競爭對手仍存在明顯差距。因此，中國採取「設備國產化」與「全球吸納人才」雙軌並進，希望盡快縮短技術落差。中國政府甚至要求，半導體企業新增產能時，至少50%以上設備必須採用中國國產設備。

然而，業界普遍認為，設備國產化並不代表先進製程能力自然提升。因為半導體設備真正發揮效能，仍必須搭配製程條件、材料技術、量測設備以及工程師的現場經驗。因此，中國積極招募全球人才，不只是企業之間的人才競爭，更是建立自主供應鏈的重要戰略。

韓媒指出，去年，台灣法務部曾針對中國企業涉嫌非法挖角高科技人才展開調查。其中，中國最大晶圓代工廠中芯國際（SMIC）曾被揭露，透過假冒外資企業成立子公司，試圖招募台灣半導體工程師。

中國科技代表企業華為（Huawei）同樣積極布局。據了解，華為為了延攬包括台積電（TSMC）在內的台灣半導體人才，開出的薪資遠高於競爭對手。華為內部人士透露，公司內部幾乎有一項默契「一定要提供比競爭公司更高的薪資。」他表示，高薪代表的是公司對人才的重視，因此在人才競爭上絕不手軟。

此外，也有消息指出，中國半導體企業為避免引起注意，並非都直接出面招聘，而是透過空頭公司或小型產學研究機構，在海外設立法人，以迂迴方式接觸全球半導體人才。

部分案例甚至祭出中國平均薪資10倍、三星電子薪資3倍以上的待遇。不過，這些高薪職位通常伴隨極高工作強度。據悉，相關研發單位採高度保密管理，工程師幾乎必須投入接近每週7天的研究開發工作。

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美國司法部表示，由於未能阻止商家進口和銷售違法藥物，中國最大電商平台阿里巴巴集團及螞蟻集團子公司同意支付6億美元（新台幣191.6億元），目前已就此達成和解協議。（彭博資料照）

〔編譯盧永山／綜合報導〕《路透》報導，美國司法部表示，由於未能阻止商家進口和銷售違法藥物，中國最大電商平台阿里巴巴集團及螞蟻集團子公司同意支付6億美元（新台幣191.6億元），目前已就此達成和解協議，美國司法部不會起訴2家公司。

除了阿里巴巴，螞蟻集團子公司Aus Merchant Services也與美國司法部達成和解；螞蟻集團也是阿里巴巴旗下企業。

美國司法部表示，美國政府正在擴大查處違法藥物的力道，由於上述2家企業已實施合規管理對策，並採取整頓改革措施，因此同意與2家公司達成和解協議。

美國司法部發布聲明指出，阿里巴巴在2016年1月至2024年12月期間，未能防止商家透過該公司營運的電商平台向美國進口和銷售違法化學物質、藥品和假藥製造設備；Aus則在2020年1月至2023年12月期間提供上述交易的支付服務。

美國司法部公布的數據顯示，阿里巴巴旗下電商平台銷售的違法商品高達8萬筆，交易總額超過2億美元（新台幣63.9億元）。阿里巴巴將被沒收2億美元，Aus將被沒收1.9億美元（新台幣60.7億元）；此外，阿里巴巴還將支付1.25億美元（新台幣38.7億元）罰款，Aus將支付8500萬美元（新台幣27.1億元）罰款。

一手掌握經濟脈動 點我訂閱自由財經Youtube頻道

title: 阿里旗下平台賣違法藥物 與美司法部和解並支付192億元

countries: 中國 美國


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新竹市長高虹安表示，民眾常關心設置太陽光電設施是否會增加房屋稅，其實須視設施搭建方式而定。（圖由新竹市府提供）

〔記者蔡彰盛／新竹報導〕近年再生能源發展蓬勃，愈來愈多民眾利用自家屋頂或自有空地設置太陽光電設施。新竹市長高虹安表示，民眾常關心設置太陽光電設施是否會增加房屋稅，其實須視設施搭建方式而定。若僅以支柱直接支撐太陽光電板，未於其上方或下方以建材鋪設頂蓋，且未設置門窗、牆壁或其他裝備，該類型設施並不屬於房屋稅課徵範圍。

高虹安表示，為落實淨零減碳目標，市府持續推動再生能源發展，鼓勵市民善用住宅屋頂空間，設置兼具發電、節能及隔熱等多重效益的太陽光電設施，有助於降低住宅能源支出。市府也提醒，太陽光電設施的搭建方式涉及房屋稅的核課與否，規劃設置時應多加留意。

高虹安指出，房屋稅是以附著於土地的各種房屋，及有關增加該房屋使用價值建築物為課徵對象，違章房屋亦不例外。一般而言，屋頂搭建具有頂蓋、梁柱或牆壁的棚架，屬可增加房屋使用價值的建築物，應併同房屋核課房屋稅；但未設有門窗、牆壁，且僅供遮陽、防雨使用的簡陋棚架，因增加房屋使用價值有限，可免予課徵房屋稅。

高虹安說，近年常見於屋頂架設的太陽光電設施，若僅以支柱直接支撐太陽光電板，未於其上方或下方以建材鋪設頂蓋，且未設有門窗、牆壁或其他裝備，則有別於一般棚架，不屬於房屋稅課徵範圍。然而，若在設置太陽光電板時，同時搭建具有頂蓋、牆壁或門窗等設施之建築物或頂樓加蓋，則須依其實際構造及使用情形，認定是否屬增加房屋使用價值之建築物，並依法課徵房屋稅。

高虹安提醒，民眾在自有建築物屋頂或土地上設置太陽光電設備，如有併同搭建頂蓋、牆壁、門窗或其他建築設施，應於建造完成起30日內，向房屋所在地的地方稅捐稽徵機關申報。若有相關疑問，亦可至稅務局網站查詢，或撥03-5225161分機401至417、0800-000321或1999市民服務專線，將有專人提供協助。

一手掌握經濟脈動 點我訂閱自由財經Youtube頻道

title: 太陽光電設施架設有學問  符合條件免課房屋稅


countries: 中國 台灣

title: 世界盃資格賽》中媒問上戰惜敗中國這次的改變？胡瓏貿打趣：有我加入

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胡瓏貿。（特派記者盧養宣攝）

〔特派記者盧養宣／南韓報導〕台灣男籃明將在2027世界盃籃球亞洲區資格賽首輪第三階段對戰中國，本階段回歸陣線的前鋒胡瓏貿表示，明天的關鍵在籃板鞏固，若能做好這一點，勝率自然會提高。

上一階段受到傷勢影響的胡瓏貿本階段重返國家隊，他表示，「現在的狀況滿好的，上一場（面對南韓）能逆轉，對大家整隊的士氣都有很大的提升，現在就是保持最好的狀態面對接下來的挑戰。」

台灣上次在FIBA一級國際賽事擊敗中國已經要追溯至2013年在馬尼拉舉行的亞錦賽，胡瓏貿表示，就是保持平常心面對，「不用想太多，也不是說是不可能戰勝的對手，球是圓的，我們就是把教練的戰術打出來，比賽打了才知道。」

隨後有中國媒體提問，上戰台灣遭中國逆轉吞敗，此次是否做了改進，胡瓏貿先幽默回應：「有啊，有我加入」，隨後正色表示，「上一場其實內容都是好的，但收尾方面可能受到體力或情緒影響，我們會從上一場的錯誤學習，不要再犯一樣的錯誤。」被問及勝負關鍵，胡瓏貿認為，必須保護好籃板，「我們的身材是劣勢，籃板保護得好，命中率提高，勝率一定會比較高。」


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維德角最強門神沃齊尼亞和阿根廷球王梅西。（資料照，路透）

〔體育中心／綜合報導〕維德角最強門神沃齊尼亞（Vozinha）在本屆世界盃一戰成名，雖然在32強止步，但5度擋下阿根廷球王梅西（Lionel Messi），精彩表現讓外界讚不絕口。根據外媒報導指出，美國足球大聯盟（MLS）的邁阿密國際有意網羅沃齊尼亞，有機會與梅西並肩作戰。

40歲的沃齊尼亞在小組賽就曾震撼奪冠熱門西班牙，一舉聲名大噪，32強面對阿根廷依舊繳出亮眼表現，多次擋下梅西射門，讓衛冕軍一度陷入苦戰，可惜最後因烏龍球以2：3輸球。賽後他走向梅西還沒開口，梅西就主動擁抱他並對他說，「你是非常出色的門將，你的國人一定以你為榮！」這句話對他來說意義重大，他問梅西能不能把球衣送他，梅西笑著說，「當然可以，我在球員通道拿給你。」這一刻也讓他永生難忘。

值得一提的是，沃齊尼亞Instagram的追蹤人數大約只有5萬人，如今已突破2565萬人，超越許多體壇巨星。

根據葡萄牙媒體《Record》報導指出，沃齊尼亞在世界盃的神勇表現，已經吸引了邁阿密國際老闆、前英格蘭球星貝克漢（David Beckham）的高度關注，有意願網羅他。沃齊尼亞與葡萄牙乙級球隊「GD Chaves」的合約已經到期，目前是自由球員，因此可以自由與任何球隊簽約，之前也傳出有3家巴西乙級俱樂部對他有興趣。

title: 世足》5度擋下梅西讓貝克漢心動？ 維德角最強門將有望與球王同隊

countries: 維德角 巴西 葡萄牙 阿根廷 美國 西班牙


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李東洺。（記者林正堃攝）

〔記者徐正揚／台北報導〕味全龍今天在主場天母棒球場才打4局，就用3發全壘打重擊上半季拿10勝的李東洺，以5：3擊敗富邦悍將，並中止李東洺的10連勝，總教練葉君璋說：「總是要有人把他弄下神壇，也該是時候了。」

李東洺1局下才投第1球，就被郭天信轟出首局首打席首球全壘打，4局下又被朱育賢、陳子豪相繼轟出陽春彈、2分彈，陳子豪本季首轟終於出爐，前次開轟是去年8月20日。李東洺用83球投4.1局失4分，生涯首次單場被敲3轟，本季已挨5轟超越2022年4轟改寫單季新高。

郭天信敲出全壘打。（記者林正堃攝）

葉君璋指出，李東洺已經10勝，總是有人要想辦法，剛好這場味全打者打得不錯，今天球也比較會飛，尤其是右外野，「他今天不是投不好，郭天信第1支全壘打，有影響他的心情，夏天到了，天氣熱了，也會影響，加上已經10連勝，心態上也會不一樣。」

葉君璋認為，李東洺一直都有球威，只是以前有控球的問題，今年的差別在於控球，不但直球投得進去，重點是變化球也能投進去，「如果他可以一直很順地投，對職棒不見得是好事，這不是負面的，他投得很好，就是要想辦法把他打下來，有可能之後他更努力，把我們壓制，搞不好今天敗了，他反而鬆一口氣。」

李東洺生涯在天母0勝3敗就是不會贏，投13.1局失12分，防禦率高達8.10，被擊出4發全壘打。味全先發洋投魔神龍正好相反，在天母4勝0敗從沒輸過，防禦率僅0.76，葉君璋表示，魔神龍今天投得很好，用101球可以投到8局，富邦是很不好打的球隊，如果投手壓不下來，隨時都有機會被翻。

朱育賢敲出全壘打。（記者林正堃攝）

陳子豪敲出全壘打振臂怒吼。（記者林正堃攝）

魔神龍。（記者林正堃攝）

王苡丞。（記者林正堃攝）

title: 中職》味全3轟終結李東洺10連勝 葉君璋：總是要有人把他弄下神壇


countries: 中國 台灣 日本

content_text:
圖齊。（特派記者盧養宣攝）

〔特派記者盧養宣／南韓報導〕台灣男籃明將在2027世界盃籃球亞洲區資格賽首輪第三階段對戰中國，只要贏球就能提前晉級第二輪，台灣隊總教練圖齊指出，團隊在逆轉南韓後提升不少信心，明天從第一分鐘就必須保持極高專注度，避免再發生像上次對戰時遭逆轉的遺憾。

台灣在世界盃資格賽首輪第二階段迎戰中國，一度取得11分領先，不過末節遭中國逆襲，終場以93：100敗下陣來，吞下在FIBA一級國際賽事的對戰7連敗。

對於如何避免於末節重蹈覆轍，圖齊表示，明天一戰對中國來說是生死之戰，因此每一分鐘都會決定比賽走向，「第四節固然重要，但更重要的是我們是如何進入第四節的，日本與中國一戰因為大幅領先，最後5分鐘就成為垃圾時間，所以我們應該一開始就做好準備，我們知道他們的實力，他們也很了解我們。」

台灣上戰在客場面對南韓鏖戰至延長賽以82：80演出逆轉勝，目前在小組與中國和南韓同為2勝3敗，明天只要擊敗中國就能提前晉級，圖齊不諱言，這場逆轉勝對提升團隊信心帶來很大的幫助，「信心這種事是日復一日、一場一場比賽累積增加的，我們現在的信心達到很高的水準，讓我們能夠在落後19分時逆轉，因為我們非常清楚自己的能力，知道比賽很長，什麼時候需要改變策略，或者根據比賽的情況來調整我們的打法。」

圖齊強調，團隊必須做好準備面對比賽過程的變化，「現在球員的專注度很高，明天我們會把所有可能的方法都用上，盡最大努力、全力以赴。」

title: 世界盃資格賽》力拚終結對戰中國7連敗！主帥圖齊點出勝負關鍵