華語樂壇天王周杰倫出道多年，累積無數經典作品，每當傳出新專輯消息總能掀起歌迷高度關注。近期他動作頻頻，除了準備新一輪巡演外，也持續釋出新專輯進度，讓粉絲期待值不斷飆升。6日他透過IG限時動態分享近況，透露帶著家人展開公路旅行，並開心表示在車上聽著自己的新歌，更對歌迷預告「過幾天就該你們了」。

周杰倫在限時動態中寫下：「這次剛好有個long weekend，帶著全家大小Road trip 的路上聽著我的新歌，感覺真爽，過幾天就該你們了。」語氣顯得相當輕鬆，也讓人感受到他對新歌的滿意程度，短短幾句話瞬間引發網路熱議，也讓外界猜測新作品距離正式曝光已經不遠。

周杰倫IG限動預告新歌進度。（圖／翻攝自周杰倫 IG）

在 Instagram 查看這則貼文

Jay Chou 周杰倫（@jaychou）分享的貼文

除了親自透露新歌進度，周杰倫先前也分享與長年合作的作詞人方文山的手機簡訊對話。對話中周杰倫提到「目前等你寫新的就差不多了，新專輯」，方文山則回應「這幾天進度以光速計算」。周杰倫甚至調侃對方「他已經不是我認識的那個文山了，大家知道為什麼嗎？因為他變快了」。對話曝光後也讓歌迷格外興奮，畢竟兩人多年來被視為華語樂壇的黃金搭檔，每次合作幾乎都能誕生經典歌曲。

在 Threads 查看

隨著消息不斷釋出，甚至有網友整理出周杰倫近年提到的新專輯製作進度時間軸。如今再加上最新限動預告「過幾天就該你們了」，讓不少人推測新專輯似乎已進入最後階段，也讓外界對新作品的推出時間更加關注，期待新歌正式登場。

春風、阮經天滑雪捕獲野生「雷神索爾」合照曝光網驚喊：太扯了！

林逸欣搭高鐵「幼貓藏外套安撫」違規 火速道歉：我太無知了！

H級寫真女星喊話「別盯胸部」遭嗆直接退出 再次發聲揭真實原因

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周杰倫家族旅行「搶先聽新歌」粉絲等不及列時間軸狂催進度


郭男被壓制後被帶回派出所。（翻攝照片／高雄洪靖宜傳真）

高雄市前鎮區一間宮廟於7日晚間舉行在遶境活動時，突然有一名郭姓男子騎車刻意不停繞行，甚至出言挑釁警察。由於網傳影片現場相當混亂，只見一群人圍著警察，警方說，當下是員警將郭壓制，民眾也跟著圍住，避免郭嫌犯離去。郭嫌因有濃厚酒味，酒測值高達每公升0.51毫克，除依《刑法》妨害公務、公共危險等罪嫌移送高雄地檢署偵辦外，另依《道路交通管理處罰條例》開罰，最高得處17萬3900元。

前鎮分局前鎮街派出所於7日晚間10點許在凱旋四路執行廟會遶境勤務，1名28歲郭姓男子騎乘輕機車行經時，不斷以危險駕駛方式來回繞行，引發現場民眾不滿。甚至以不雅語詞挑釁執勤員警，且欲衝撞員警，警方以強制力將郭嫌自車上強力拉下逮捕，一群人也跟著圍了上去。

壓制過程中造成員警左右膝蓋擦傷，另郭嫌因有濃厚酒味，經對郭嫌實施酒測測試，酒測值高達每公升0.51毫克，超過法定標準值。

全案將依違反《刑法》第135條妨害公務、第140條侮辱公務員罪、第185條及185條之3公共危險等罪嫌移送高雄地檢署偵辦。

另針對郭嫌違規部分，分別依違反《道路交通管理處罰條例》第 16 條「改裝排氣管」、第 18 條「改裝燈光」、第 21 條「無照駕駛」、第31條第6項「未戴安全帽」、第 35 條「酒後駕車」、第 43 條「危險駕車」予以舉發，共計最高得處新臺幣 17萬3900元。

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遠雄人壽公司某通訊處前經理陳麗妙，假藉銷售公司保單名義，向保戶招攬「優質信託憑證」，並保證獲利，年息高達6％至12％，21年來吸金詐騙4名投資人逾5000萬元，台北地檢署6日指揮調查局北機站搜索並約談陳女到案，晚間依《銀行法》移送北檢複訊。檢察官諭知逮捕陳女，但陳女聲請提審，經台北地院漏夜開庭後駁回，移由檢察官繼續開庭，7日凌晨訊後以陳女涉嫌重大，有勾串之虞，諭知聲請羈押禁見。法官晚間裁定陳女羈押禁見2個月。

據指出，陳女任職遠雄人壽公司多年，是資深的保險從業人員，她從保險業務員一路做到通訊處的經理，去年事件爆發後即已離職。

調查局獲報，指陳女自民國93年間起，假藉銷售遠雄人壽公司保單名義，向數名投資人招攬「優質信託憑證」，向投資人保證獲利，並宣稱年息6％至12％，但陳女將部分投資資金，支付投資利息，之後因資金周轉出問題，逐漸付不出利息，遂自公司離職。

投資人因拿不到本息，到遠雄人壽公司找陳女，發現陳女已離職，始知受騙，遂向檢調檢舉，調查局估計，陳女21年來吸金詐騙金額逾5000萬元。

北檢檢察官6日指揮調查局北機站持法院核發之搜索票，搜索陳女住所，並通知陳女到案說明。全案朝《銀行法》、《刑法》詐欺罪方向偵辦。

21年吸金逾5000萬 壽險女經理聲請提審遭駁 檢聲押禁見

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21年吸金逾5000萬　壽險女經理遭羈押禁見


伊朗總統裴澤斯基安（Masoud Pezeshkian）今（7日）稍早透過伊朗國營電視台發表預錄的談話，他表示「有必要向受到攻擊的鄰國道歉」，川普緊接在後發表強硬聲明，宣稱伊朗在美以重挫後，才向中東鄰國道歉投降。伊朗專家隨即駁斥，美國總統川普將伊朗總統言論解讀為「投降」的說法完全錯誤。

美國與以色列對伊朗的軍事行動進入第二週，各方對戰事與政治訊號的解讀出現分歧。半島電視台（Al Jazeera）採訪德黑蘭智庫Diplo House主任戈拉姆扎德（Hamid Reza Gholamzadeh ）表示，川普把伊朗總統裴澤斯基安的談話解讀為向鄰國屈服，「完全是錯誤的解釋」。

他指出，裴澤斯基安在一段預錄演說中表示，伊朗將停止攻擊鄰國目標，除非攻擊是從那些國家的領土發動。政策根本沒有轉變，而是重申伊朗過去一週以來的既定立場。

戈拉姆扎德表示：「過去七天的情況一直如此，伊朗一直在打擊美國或以色列在該地區的資產。」他進一步說，伊朗目前向周邊國家提出的要求，是希望他們不要與美國或以色列合作，也不要讓美以兩國利用他們的領土或領空對伊朗發動攻擊。他形容這項要求在國際關係中「非常正常」且「合法」。

另一方面，裴澤斯基安也強調，伊朗絕不會在外部壓力下投降，先前川普曾要求伊朗「無條件投降」，並警告若衝突持續，美國可能對伊朗發動更猛烈的打擊。

目前由美國與以色列發動的軍事行動仍在持續，伊朗則透過無人機與飛彈持續攻擊以色列及海灣地區的相關目標。

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73歲寶島歌王楊烈7日在台灣戲曲中心舉辦「自由之地2026世界巡迴演唱會」。向來敬業的他早在半年前開啟魔鬼訓練模式，卻因體力負荷過載，意外2度患帶狀皰疹（皮蛇），甚至還感冒大病一場，幸好經過治療已順利康復。

楊烈今晚全程飆唱3小時共唱30首熱門歌曲，橫跨中、英、西、日、台語5聲道，連換6套從日本空運量身訂製華服，十分用心，特地獻唱〈燒肉粽〉向歌壇前輩郭金發致敬，象徵著台灣歌謠命脈的代代傳承，更邀愛女楊舞子同台對唱，父女合唱曾登頂美國告示牌的日文神曲〈Sukiyaki〉（昂首向前走），默契十足，

楊烈（右）7日舉辦「自由之地」演唱會，邀來愛女楊舞子同台合唱。（許雅淳攝）

楊烈透露女兒小時候非常黏他，感情很好，有次他外出買東西回家，發現應該正在學校上課的女兒卻躺在家裡，女兒說因為太熱所以回家吹冷氣，他再問女兒，「學校門關著怎麼出來的？」女兒直白說「翻牆」，讓楊烈又好氣又好笑。

楊烈（中）7日舉辦「自由之地」演唱會，日籍妻子藤堂麗子（左）、女兒楊舞子在後台暖心打氣。（印太戰略智庫提供）

楊舞子分享爸爸楊烈在家生活簡單，爸爸喜歡園藝、照顧小動物等，她從小陪著熱愛運動的楊烈一起游泳、遛狗，這些日常都是父女之間最珍貴的回憶。楊烈日籍妻子藤堂麗子、女兒楊舞子在台下替他打氣加油，星友游安順、高欣欣與李國超夫妻等人到場支持。

楊烈7日舉辦「自由之地」演唱會，賣力飆唱多首夯曲。（印太戰略智庫提供）

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73歲楊烈驚爆2度皮蛇纏身！大病一場最新近況曝光


台中一間烤玉米店近日被網友踢爆食安疑慮。有民眾直擊店家在人行道上清洗玉米，甚至將洗好的玉米擺在水溝蓋上，質疑疑似為前一天未賣完的烤玉米再清洗販售，相關畫面曝光後引發熱議。對此，台中市食安處表示已接獲通報，將派員前往稽查。

一名網友在臉書社團「爆料公社」發文，並指出台中有間烤玉米店老闆娘在人行道上洗玉米，疑似將前一天烤過但沒賣完的烤玉米直接拿去清洗，並且將洗好的玉米放在水溝蓋上方，水盆內的水也是黑的，讓他不滿認為「你們衛生真的很差，是覺得消費者的胃都很強大嗎？」。

網友還指出，洗好放在水溝蓋上的玉米，也沒有再次清洗就放進鍋子內，讓他無奈表示，之前常跟該店家買烤玉米，由於是秤重販售，平均一支烤玉米都要價100元，烤玉米店這樣的方式做生意、處理食物，讓他以後也不敢再上門。

台中有一間烤玉米店將未賣完的玉米，洗完後竟然丟在水溝蓋上，遭爆食安疑慮。（圖／翻攝自臉書爆料公社）

貼文在網上曝光後，網友紛紛留言表示「烤玉米一支要100元，我真的不懂，都一個便當的價錢了」、「吃的東西這樣直接放地上，太缺德了吧！違反食安法可以檢舉了」、「做吃的真的要注重衛生」、「好吃的秘密…被大家學走了」、「水溝蓋附近也常會有蟑螂、老鼠出沒吧？真的衛生堪慮」、「在地玉米，好吃的秘訣」。

對此，台中市食安處表示也接獲通報，已完成錄案，將依程序派員前往稽查，若查獲業者有不符合食品良好衛生規範準則之情事，將責令限期改善；屆期複查如仍未改善，將依《食品安全衛生管理法》規定，處6萬元至2億元罰鍰。

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臉書社團 爆料公社 網友

好吃秘訣？烤玉米洗完丟「水溝蓋」上　挨批太缺德


台中市北屯區有民眾拍到一處社區外，竟有男子持棒毆打黑狗，該犬隻被打到不斷哀號，但男子卻變本加厲、越打越兇。虐狗影像在網上曝光後，引發網友怒喊「這種人真的不要養寵物，太過分了」、「謝謝你錄下來，這是證據」。對此，台中市動保處表示，已請警方協助調閱周邊監視器，追查行為人身分。

一名民眾在社群平台「Threads」發文，並分享多段影像，拍攝地點位於台中市北屯區后庄路與后庄三街口一處社區外。影像中可見，一名男子叼著菸，手裡拿著棒子對著一隻黑狗狂打，由於黑狗被繫繩圈住，僅能不斷閃避，並痛得哀號。

民眾表示，當時有路人經過向打狗男子表示不要再打，但路人走後，男子仍繼續鞭打，黑狗的叫聲越來越慘。男子發現有人在拍攝，卻仍用棒子敲打黑狗的頭部。民眾無奈地說「覺得自己好沒種，怎麼不敢開口制止」。

影像曝光後，網友紛紛留言表示「雖然你當下無法救援，但你用你的方式拯救小狗，沒有錄下來小狗就沒有被大家看到被好心人拯救的機會，你很勇敢了」、「自卑無能，只會找動物出氣」、「養狗不是拿來虐待的，不然跟健康一樣慘」、「謝謝你錄下來，這是證據」、「這種人真的不要養寵物，太過分了」。

對此，台中市動保處表示，已派員前往案發地點訪查，並向社區管理室及周邊住戶、店家蒐集資訊，同時調閱部分社區監視器。不過，男子行經路口後即離開監視範圍，目前尚未確認身分。動保處已請警方協助調閱周邊道路監視器，持續追查行為人行蹤。

動保處強調，依《動物保護法》規定，任何人不得騷擾、虐待或傷害動物，若造成動物受傷，最高可處7萬5000元罰鍰，情節重大者更可能涉及刑責。呼籲民眾若發現動物遭不當對待，可撥打1959動保專線通報，共同守護動物生命安全。

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世界棒球經典賽（ WBC ）台灣隊今天以 14 比 0 扣倒捷克，保有晉級一線生機。總教練曾豪駒感謝台灣球迷跨海應援，並喊話「希望延續好的感覺到明天」，對戰韓國一定要奪勝。

經典賽接連敗給澳洲、日本後，台灣隊今天背水一戰面對捷克，投打兩端穩定發揮，尤其台美混血費柴德（ Stuart Fairchild ）轟出滿貫砲，終場以 14 比 0 提前帶走勝利，仍保有晉級希望。

台灣隊總教練曾豪駒賽後接受媒體聯訪時表示，這是一場必須搶勝的球賽，很感謝全場台灣球迷賣力應援，給予全隊奮戰的力量；一開始打線比較不順利，但重點仍是回歸基本作戰，大家也有共識讓團隊產生更多連結，「每個人做好本分跟任務，才能創造贏球契機。」

此役台灣隊派出莊陳仲敖掛帥先發，他也用傑出表現回報教練團的信任，繳出2.2局無失分好投，獲得曾豪駒稱讚「非常穩定」。

不過，接替的是左投林昱珉，這項調度被外界熱議，曾豪駒解釋，投手輪替都是賽前就設定好，「這場對我們是很重要勝利，希望延續好的感覺到明天。」

如願拿到本屆經典賽首勝，台灣隊將於明天與韓國隊正面交鋒，在分組賽最終戰全力求勝。曾豪駒強調，每名選手必須全力以赴，掌握細節、完成自身任務，「我們沒有退路，一定要拿下勝利。」

（新聞資料來源 : 中央社，芋傳媒編輯）

韓國 捷克 日本 澳洲 台灣

WBC》感謝球迷跨海應援 曾豪駒：對韓國下達必勝令


世界棒球經典賽台灣隊今天以 14 比 0、7 局扣倒捷克隊，搶下重要首勝。總統賴清德表示，謝謝球員們讓大家看見台灣棒球韌性，也把信心重新打了回來，明天還有台韓大戰，「繼續拚、繼續挺」。

世界棒球經典賽（ WBC ）台灣隊今天團隊敲 11 安、跑出破紀錄單場 8 次盜壘成功，費柴德（ Stuart Fairchild ）敲出滿貫砲帶起士氣，終場以 14 比 0、7 局扣倒捷克隊，搶下重要首勝。

賴總統透過臉書發文表示，悶了兩天， Team Taiwan 今天終於把壓力釋放出來了。費柴德（ Stuart Fairchild ）前 2 場都差一點，今天終於把球轟出牆外，還是一發點燃全場的滿貫砲。

總統說，鄭宗哲擔任開路先鋒，帶動全隊跑出單場8次盜壘，刷新隊史紀錄；「國防部長」張育成也在最需要火力的時候挺身而出，繳出 3 安打、4 分打點。

總統指出，當費柴德開轟，場外的陳傑憲也比出招牌的「 Team Taiwan 」手勢，那一幕真的讓人很動容，因為大家都知道，沒有人比這群選手更想贏，也沒有人比台灣隊更珍惜站上球場、為台灣拚戰的每一刻。

總統表示，希望陳傑憲早日康復，早點回到球場。謝謝球員們用一次次盜壘、一支支安打，讓大家看見台灣棒球的韌性，也把信心重新打了回來。還要謝謝「十號隊友」把東京巨蛋變得像台灣主場，用一聲聲應援陪伴選手。

總統說，在和展現拚勁的捷克隊打出精采比賽後，明天還有台韓大戰，「繼續拚、繼續挺！台灣加油！ Team Taiwan 加油」！

（新聞資料來源 : 中央社）

WBC》台灣扣倒捷克 總統感謝球員展現棒球韌性繼續拚


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中國 日本 肯亞 印度 伊朗 台灣 巴拿馬 荷蘭 澳洲 巴林 越南 尼泊爾

楊瓊瓔 習近平 卓榮泰 江啟臣 鄭麗文

哈米尼 | 關鍵字新聞


新华社北京3月7日电 为消除外界对2026年美加墨世界杯能否安全举办的担忧，墨西哥总统辛鲍姆6日公布相关安保计划，将在瓜达拉哈拉、墨西哥城和蒙特雷三座世界杯主办城市部署近10万名安保人员，以保障球迷安全。

据法新社报道，这项安保计划将覆盖墨西哥的世界杯主办城市及其周边旅游目的地。墨方世界杯协调中心负责人罗曼·比利亚尔瓦索·巴里奥斯说，该国将部署总计超过9.9万人的安保力量，包括2万名军事人员、5.5万名警察以及私营安保人员，还将动用约2500辆军用和民用车辆、24架飞机，配备反无人机系统等。此外，墨西哥政府正在与美国和加拿大协调相关安全问题。

2月24日，在墨西哥哈利斯科州首府瓜达拉哈拉，一名骑手经过一处2026年世界杯倒计时牌。新华社发

墨西哥定于6月11日至7月19日与美国、加拿大共同举办2026年世界杯。根据赛程安排，瓜达拉哈拉、墨西哥城和蒙特雷将承办共计13场比赛。墨西哥预计将在今年世界杯期间接待数百万名游客。

墨西哥军方2月22日打死“哈利斯科州新生代”贩毒集团头目内梅西奥·奥塞格拉·塞万提斯。随后该贩毒集团成员在墨西哥20个州封锁道路、焚烧车辆和商店，制造骚乱。超过70人在军方行动及后续骚乱中死亡。这一系列事件引发外界对2026年世界杯能否安全举办的担忧。

国际足联主席因凡蒂诺和辛鲍姆对此均表示，暴力事件不会影响世界杯的举办，访墨球迷无需担心。（王奕昕）

墨西哥将部署近10万名安保人员护航世界杯-新华网


新华社北京3月7日电 美国和以色列2月28日联合对伊朗发动“先发制人”的军事打击，白宫声称此举是为了遏制来自伊朗的“直接威胁”，但一些法律专家表示，根据国际法，美政府方面所列举的危险并不能成为发动军事行动的理由。

据法新社6日报道，白宫新闻秘书莱维特4日说，美国发动此次军事行动的决定“是基于伊朗对美国构成的各种直接威胁的累积效应，以及总统基于事实认为伊朗确实构成紧迫和直接威胁的判断”。她列举了伊朗支持“恐怖主义”、其弹道导弹计划以及据称试图“制造核武器和原子弹”等行为。

这是3月6日在伊朗首都德黑兰拍摄的爆炸产生的浓烟。新华社记者 沙达提摄

然而，美国圣母大学法学教授玛丽·埃伦·奥康奈尔认为，根据国际法，美国对伊朗发动军事行动“毫无正当性”。“法律明确规定，国际争端应通过和平手段解决，包括谈判、调解、国际组织介入。”

她还说，特朗普政府只“模糊地提到伊朗即将发动袭击以及阻止伊朗获得核武器”，而《联合国宪章》要求，“至少需要有伊朗正在发动重大袭击的证据”。

美国国务卿鲁比奥早些时候为美方军事行动提供了另一个理由。他2日声称，美国之所以对伊朗发动军事打击，缘于以色列将袭击伊朗，而美国也将成为伊朗的报复对象，因而决定“先发制人”。但特朗普次日驳斥了有关以色列将美国拖入冲突的说法，称美方决定是基于“伊朗即将率先发动攻击”的判断。

比利时智库国际危机研究组织的美国项目高级顾问、美国国务院前法律顾问布赖恩·菲纽肯说，鲁比奥及特朗普政府为军事行动提供的理由存在诸多问题。“美国凭借关键军事支持所带来的影响力，本可能阻止以色列对伊朗的任何袭击。”（刘曦）

法律专家称美国对伊朗动武违反国际法-新华网


NCIST mulls Kratos drone collaboration

PLAN:  The cooperation might involve combining the Indigenous Defense Fighter engine, a domestic AESA and Kratos’ XQ-58A stealth drone, a defense official said

Taiwan’s state-run defense research group is mulling developing autonomous “loyal wingman” drones to support fighter jets in a potential collaboration with a US-based manufacturer, a source said.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a defense official said the National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology (NCIST) has reached out to Kratos Defense in a bid to collaborate in building combat aircraft utilizing technologies featured in the latter’s XQ-58A Valkyrie.

The NCIST is optimistic that the project would go forward, as Kratos has shared valuable technologies, the official said.

National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology engineers and a Kratos Defense representative pose for a picture in front of a Mighty Hornet IV loitering munition, front, and a Kratos XQ-58A Valkyrie in an undated photograph. Photo: Screen grab from Kratos Defense’s Web site

The Kratos XQ-58A is an artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled combat uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV), which has been selected as a potential companion aircraft to fight in “manned-unmanned teams,” which use “loyal wingman” drones, with the US Marine Corps’ F-35 aircraft.

Publicly available information shows that the drone is equipped with an internal weapons bay, a feature typically utilized for stealth aircraft, allowing it to carry weapons without compromising its low observable design.

The institute’s concept aims to combine the engine used in Indigenous Defense Fighters and a domestically developed active electronically scanned array radar system (AESA) with the infrared sensors in the XQ-58A airframe, the defense official said.

The AI navigation and command system that enables the UAV to fight autonomously and support friendly aircraft would be obtained from a separate source, they said.

The NCIST previously cooperated with Kratos in developing the Mighty Hornet IV, a loitering munition that features smart technology and high aerodynamic performance, enabled using a jet engine.

The two defense firms on Friday announced that the operational capabilities of the platform have been fully validated and that local mass production would start soon.

Steve Fendley, president of Kratos’ uncrewed systems division, said that the Mighty Hornet IV project could be a “springboard for ... potential additional collaborative efforts with other Kratos aircraft, and NCIST systems and technologies.”

The US defense manufacturer’s news release hinted that the collaboration could center on the XQ-58A, as the autonomous fighter aircraft was prominently featured in a group photo showing the two companies’ designers.

Kratos Defense’s fact sheet shows that the XQ-58A is a stealthy, high-performance and affordable autonomous collaborative platform that has been flying since 2019.

The aircraft, thanks to its propulsion system, has a cruise range of 5,666km and can reach a top airspeed of Mach 0.86, with an altitude of up to 13,716m.

The XQ-58A is a multi-role platform capable of carrying “kinetic and non-kinetic effectors” in its internal bomb bay and wing stations, Kratos Defense said.


REASSURING COMEBACK: After a demoralizing loss to Japan on Friday, the Taiwan team’s bats came alive, setting a new record with eight stolen bases in a single game

Taiwan secured their first victory in this year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC) yesterday, handing the Czech Republic a 14-0 trouncing at the Tokyo Dome.

After being defeated in its first two Pool C games — including a demoralizing 13-0 loss to Japan on Friday — Taiwan’s bats came alive.

The lineup erupted for 11 hits and scored in five of the mercy rule-shortened game’s seven innings, a sharp contrast to the four hits and 17 strikeouts recorded across Taiwan’s previous 54 at-bats.

Designated hitter Stuart Fairchild, left, hits a grand slam home run during Taiwan’s World Baseball Classic game against the Czech Republic at the Tokyo Dome yesterday. Photo: AFP

The offensive explosion was punctuated by designated hitter Stuart Fairchild’s grand slam in the top of the second inning, which extended the lead to 6-0 and marked Taiwan’s first grand slam in the tournament.

Manager Tseng Hao-jiu (曾豪駒) described the home run as “reassuring,” but emphasized the team’s collective discipline.

“We may not have as many sluggers as other teams, but every one of our players did their job today — from getting on base to stealing and manufacturing runs,” Tseng said at a news conference after the game.

Taiwan set a new national WBC record with eight stolen bases in a single game, led by three steals each from infielder Cheng Tsung-che (鄭宗哲) and Fairchild.

The duo, batting first and third respectively, set the tone in the opening frame by reaching base on two drag bunts.

They then pulled off a double steal that forced a wild throw from Czech catcher Martin Cervenka, allowing Cheng to sprint home during the game’s first run.

Cheng after the game said his priority was simply getting on base.

“I noticed the third baseman was playing deep when I stepped into the box, so I decided to lay down a bunt,” he said.

Cheng finished the day reaching base four times in five plate appearances, with one hit and three walks.

Of the 11 Taiwanese batters who saw action, six recorded at least one hit, led by Yu Chang’s (張育成) three-hit game.

Chang, who was named Pool A MVP in the 2023 WBC, is batting a team-high 0.455 and is tied with Fairchild for the team lead in RBIs with four.

On the mound, Taiwanese pitchers had a combined 10 strikeouts.

Starter Zhuang Chen Zhong-ao (莊陳仲敖) fanned four over 2-2/3 innings, while Lin Yu-min — currently with the Arizona Diamondbacks — added three strikeouts in 2-1/3 innings of relief.

As Zhuang Chen and Lin had exceeded the 30-pitch mark, they would not be available for today’s pivotal clash against South Korea.

The 11am matchup is a “must-win” for Taiwan to keep its hopes of advancing to the quarterfinals alive.

Taiwan crushes Czechia 14-0 at the WBC


謝長廷 賴清德 蔡其昌 鄭文燦 卓榮泰 郭國文 李逸洋

Premier Cho makes surprise visit to Japan for WBC

By Lin Tsuei-yi, Chung Li-hua and Chen Cheng-yu / Staff Reporters in Tokyo and Taipei

Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) attended the World Baseball Classic (WBC) game between Taiwan and the Czech Republic in Tokyo yesterday — the first time an incumbent Taiwanese premier has visited Japan since Taipei and Tokyo severed diplomatic ties in 1972.

The timing of the visit is sensitive, as Japan-China relations have hit rock bottom following Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks in November last year regarding a “Taiwan contingency.”

Cho was spotted at the Tokyo Dome with Representative to Japan Lee Yi-yang (李逸洋), Minister of Sports Lee Yang (李洋) and CPBL commissioner Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌).

Taiwanese baseball fans greet Premier Cho Jung-tai, center, at the World Baseball Classic game between Taiwan and the Czech Republic in Tokyo yesterday. Photo: CNA

Many Taiwanese spectators noticed Cho and stood up to shake his hand.

Cho left the venue early, shortly after the top of the seventh inning, when the score had already widened significantly.

Sources said Cho arrived in Japan earlier yesterday, where an agreement was made with Japanese officials not to publicly disclose the details of his one-day whirlwind visit.

Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文) said he learned of the premier’s visit during his meeting with Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party executive secretary-general Koichi Hagiuda on Tuesday.

At the meeting, Hagiuda mentioned that Cho was about to visit Japan, Kuo said, adding that he was surprised.

Hagiuda reportedly told Kuo that the visit was “a secret.”

The Japanese side’s point of contact was members of its National Diet, while the Taiwanese point of contact was likely Taiwan-Japan Relations Association chairman Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), a former representative to Japan, he added.

Kuo described the visit as a breakthrough in “baseball diplomacy,” as it was the first time a sitting premier from Taiwan has visited Japan.

Kuo cited Cho as saying that there were no other meetings scheduled during his stay, as the trip was made purely to watch the game.

Taiwan yesterday trounced the Czech Republic 14-0, ending the game early after seven innings under the mercy rule.

The win provided a much-needed morale boost for Taiwan, after losing to Australia and Japan.

As for today’s game against South Korea at 11am, Cho would be at the lobby of Taipei Main Station to cheer for Team Taiwan alongside the public, sources said.

Since Taiwan-Japan diplomatic ties were severed, the two nations have maintained “unofficial relations” and have been cautious about high-level visits.

In July 2022, then-vice president William Lai (賴清德) traveled to Tokyo to offer condolences after the assassination of former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe.

The visit was seen as a significant breakthrough in Taiwan-Japan diplomacy.

In June 2023, then-vice premier Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) visited Japan for four days, meeting with high-ranking Japanese political figures, including then-Liberal Democratic Party vice president Taro Aso.

At the time, several Japanese media outlets referred to Cheng as “one of the highest-ranking Taiwanese government officials to visit Japan since the 1972 severance of diplomatic ties.”

Additional reporting by CNA


A subsidiary of a Hong Kong-based company that has lost control of two critical ports on the Panama Canal said it is seeking US$2 billion of compensation in damages from Panama over its “illegal” takeover of the ports.

Panama Ports Co, a unit of Hong Kong’s CK Hutchison Holdings (長江和記實業), on Friday said in a statement that it is demanding the sum under international arbitration proceedings that it had already started.

The Panamanian government last week seized control of the Balboa and Cristobal ports on each end of the Panama Canal, after the country’s Supreme Court declared earlier that a concession allowing Panama Ports to run the pair of ports was unconstitutional.

Silhouettes of container cranes in the Panama Canal’s Port of Balboa are pictured on Tuesday last week. Photo: AFP

Panama Ports operated the two ports since 1997 and had only renewed its concession in 2021 for another 25 years.

Beijing and Hong Kong’s governments had also hit back at Panama over the seizure of the two ports.

The two ports came into the spotlight after US President Donald Trump early last year accused China of “running” the Panama Canal.

After CK Hutchison announced a deal in March last year that it would sell the bulk of their dozens of global ports, including the two Panama ports, to a consortium that involved US investment firm BlackRock in a US$23 billion deal, Beijing was quick to protest and the deal has been largely stalled over the past months.

CK Hutchison and Panama Ports “will not relent and they are not coming for some token relief — they will assert all of their rights and damages they are due because of the radical breaches and anti-investor conduct of the Panamanian State,” the statement said.

The Panamanian state had previously misstated the compensation figure, it added.

Panamanian Minister of Economy and Finance Felipe Chapman had earlier said the company was seeking US$1.5 billion in compensation.

In a separate statement on Friday, CK Hutchison accused Panama of occupying the two ports, and taking the property and personnel of the Panama Ports “without transparency.”

The company also said it would continue to “pursue recourse to available national and international legal proceedings” on the matter.

Panama Ports Co seeking US$2bn in compensation


Tibetans march against repression by Beijing

SEPARATION TACTICS: Groups called on Taiwan to take action against Chinese surveillance and oppression as they marked the anniversary of Tibetan Uprising Day

Tibetans yesterday marched in Taipei alongside human rights advocates to protest China’s transnational repression and its crack down on the spirituality of Tibetans.

The march marked the 67th anniversary of Tibetan Uprising Day on March 10, 1959.

The Swiss government in February last year published a report saying that exiled Tibetans and Uighurs are facing transnational repression from China.

Tibetans in Taiwan and their supporters hold placards, a portrait of the Dalai Lama and Tibetan flags during a march in Taipei yesterday. Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times

Kelsang Gyaltsen Bawa, chairman of the Tibet Religious Foundation of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, said at the march that China is seeking to rewrite the history of Tibet through linguistic and cultural means.

He cited as an example China’s requirement of the international community to replace the term “Tibet” with “Xizang (西藏)” — the Hanyu pinyin romanization of Tibet in Mandarin.

The Central Tibetan Administration is promoting the use of the Chinese characters “圖伯特” (Tibet) over “西藏” to refer to Tibet in Mandarin, Bawa said.

Human Rights Network for Tibet and Taiwan executive member Tashi Tsering is pictured with a red X over his mouth during a march in Taipei yesterday. Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times

Millions of Tibetan children are ordered to attend boarding schools, and separated from their families, their mother tongue and the Tibetan culture, he said.

Religious freedom is facing unprecedented suppression as China attempts to manipulate recognition of the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation, Bawa said.

The Chinese policies have a clear goal — to wipe out cultural and spiritual heritage, he said.

“Democracy did not come easy and freedom might not last forever,” Bawa said, adding that supporting Tibet is defending the values of freedom for Taiwan and the rest of the world.

Tashi Tsering said he is a second-generation Tibetan in the independence movement and has not been able to contact his family in Tibet since he was 18 years old due to his political stance.

The families of many young Tibetans promoting independence are terrorized by the Chinese Communist Party, he said.

National Human Rights Commission member Yeh Ta-hua (葉大華) said that China’s surveillance and oppression of Tibetans have not ceased since it broke the Seventeen Point Agreement more than 67 years ago.

The agreement, signed in 1951 between China and Tibetan representatives, affirmed Chinese sovereignty over Tibet while promising autonomy, religious freedom and preservation of local systems.

The oppression has escalated into transnational repression, which targets not only Tibetans and Uighurs, but also Hong Kongers and Taiwanese, Yeh said.

“Supporting Tibetans upholds Taiwan’s own democracy and freedom,” she said.

Hong Kong Outlanders member Sky Fung (馮詔天) said that Tibetans and Hong Kongers with connections to Taiwan are at risk of being charged of “collusion with external forces” by Beijing.

However, Tibetans and Hong Kongers continue their independence movements in Taiwan because they cannot voice dissent in their homeland, Fung said.

China attempted to interfere in the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation in Tibet, and also destroyed the rule of law and freedom in Hong Kong, he said.

“It actions push Tibetans and Hong Kongers to the limit,” he said, calling on people in Taiwan to take action to resist Chinese oppression.

About 300 people participated in the march, organizers said.

Additional reporting by CNA


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

The presence of several ships flying flags of convenience near the Fangshan Submarine Cable Protection Zone off the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) could indicate that they are engaged in “gray zone” tactics or targeting Taiwan’s undersea cables, military interest group TaiwanADIZ said yesterday.

The vessels switched their Automatic Identification System (AIS) statuses to “not under command” after entering the area, the group said.

AIS statuses are required under the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea. “Not under command” indicates that a vessel cannot maneuver due to exceptional circumstances such as engine or steering failure.

A graphic shows a cluster of ships in the Fangshan Submarine Cable Protection Zone off the Hengchun Peninsula. Photo: Screen grab from marinetraffic.com

Multiple vessels simultaneously reporting mechanical failure in the same location, particularly that location, is suspicious and raises questions about their motives, the group said.

The Fangshan area has one of the densest concentrations of submarine cables near Taiwan, it said.

Vessels that drop anchor and drag it along the seabed could damage the data links, it added.

Ships experiencing mechanical problems should notify maritime authorities and request assistance, it said.

The Coast Guard Administration and the Republic of China Navy should monitor the situation using coastal radar and patrol vessels to prevent foreign ships from sabotaging submarine cables under the guise of engineering difficulties, TaiwanADIZ said.

If the vessels continue to loiter, the threat to critical infrastructure would rise, it said, adding that authorities should order them to leave the area or board and inspect them.

Group warns of ships loitering off southern Taiwan


TRUMP-XI MEETING: As well as standing firm on the US’ Taiwan policy, Trump should be frank with Xi Jinping about actions in Hong Kong, Nicholas Burns said

US President Donald Trump should stand by Washington’s commitment to provide defensive weapons to Taiwan, former US ambassador to China Nicholas Burns said on Friday at a conference at George Washington University on US-China ties ahead of Trump’s planned meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in Beijing from March 31 to April 2.

Taiwan is likely to be on the agenda for both leaders, he said.

“I hope that President Trump and his administration will defend the long-standing, half-century ... one-China policy and our obligations under the Taiwan Relations Act for the United States to provide defensive military technology to Taiwan to expand its deterrence ... and our obligation to keep sufficient military forces in the western Pacific to do that,” Burns said.

Trump should also discuss China’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine with Xi, he said.

“China’s support for the Russian defense industrial base through the use of ... microelectronics has helped [Russian President Vladimir] Putin to conduct his brutal war in Ukraine,” he said.

The US’ agenda at the meeting with Xi should also include Beijing’s harassment of “atolls belonging to the Philippines” in the South China Sea, he said.

Burns said that the China policy framework of former US president Joe Biden was correct, as it emphasized the competition between the two countries, as well as the need to cooperate in climate change and other important global matters.

However, the strategic competition is of tantamount importance and Washington cannot afford negligence in insisting on US security interests and those of its allies, he said, adding he is concerned about Beijing’s human rights record.

China’s “outrageous” move to sentence Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai (黎智英) to what is “effectively a life sentence” and the forced Sinicization of Tibetan children were evidence of a disregard for human rights by Beijing, he said.

“There are no more civil rights for ... Hong Kong,” he said, citing his experience during a personal visit to the territory last year.

China reneged on its promise to the world to respect Hong Kong’s rights and traditions, which it made before the territory’s transfer in 1997, he said.

The Chinese Communist Party is in the middle of a large-scale operation to arrest and jail Christian leaders for their religious beliefs, he said.

Citing a visit in 2024, Burns said that authorities in China are enforcing policies in Inner Mongolia, with the aim of erasing the local culture.

He said that he agrees with Trump that the US must take action to stabilize global economic unrest in conjunction with China, but that cannot be at the expense of keeping silent about human rights.

Former US ambassador to Russia Thomas Pickering told the event that the US cannot turn a blind eye to the threat China poses to Taiwan, even if the matter can seemingly be delayed.

The 1992 Shanghai Communique stipulates that Washington’s “one China” policy and a framework of dialogue that calls for regular and institutionalized exchanges between Taiwan and China, Pickering said.

Such exchanges require a degree of secrecy to keep the two sides’ differences under control, and should serve as a tool for both to seek common ground and develop their relationship, not provocation, he said.

Pickering said he does not mean that Taiwan should give up its aspiration for independence or that China should accept a situation it has long opposed, but that the two sides should find issues they can discuss.

Ex-envoy urges US to stand by promises


TIME TO RE-EXAMINE The warnings on menopause treatment drugs are more than 20 years old, and have been shown to be based on an imperfect understanding, he said

The warning labels for risks from menopausal hormone therapy (MHT) in Taiwan should be updated, as they are based on a study from more than 20 years ago and newer studies indicate the risks are more age-dependent, Taiwanese Menopause Society president Lai Tsung-hsuan (賴宗炫) said yesterday ahead of International Women’s Day today.

Women experience continuous hormonal changes throughout their lives, particularly after entering menopause, which can cause symptoms including hot flashes, night sweats and insomnia.

Many women choose to endure the symptoms rather than seek treatment, as studies have indicated that MHT might increase the risk of breast cancer and cardiovascular disease.

The US Food and Drug Administration announced the removal last year of “black box” safety warnings regarding risks of cardiovascular disease, breast cancer and dementia from most MHT products.

Lai, a reproductive medicine specialist, said the risks from MHT are actually highly dependent on the patient’s age and the timing of use, but the warning labels in Taiwan remain unchanged from 20 years ago.

He recommended that these labels be updated based on the latest evidence, allowing women to feel safe getting MHT under a physician’s assessment.

The 2002 Women’s Health Initiative study reported a 26 percent increased risk of invasive breast cancer in postmenopausal women taking combined estrogen plus progestin, leading to an early halt of the trial and an immediate decline in MHT use, Lai said.

About one-third of postmenopausal women in Taiwan were using MHT before the study was published, and at one point, it declined to only about 1 percent of postmenopausal women, he said.

The study had an average participant age of 63, which generally began using MHT more than a decade past menopause, which is a different medical environment from the women aged between 50 to 59 who are the most common age group seeking such treatment clinically, Lai said.

Follow-up studies that reanalyzed the data by age found different results, he said, adding that based on evidence, initiating MHT before the age of 60 would not increase the risk of breast cancer and might even provide cardiovascular benefits, while there might be an increase in risk if started after the age of 60.

Lai said MHT not only improves menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats and sleep disturbances, but also helps reduce bone loss and prevent osteoporosis.

It is commonly used to treat genitourinary symptoms of menopause, including vaginal dryness, recurring vaginitis and urinary tract infections, he added.

The benefits of taking MHT are generally considered to outweigh the risks for women who experience premature menopause before the age of 50, he said, adding that beginning use within 10 years of menopause or before age 60 is considered the best timing, in terms of safety and efficacy.

Estrogen and progesterone are the main MHT used clinically, but they should be carefully assessed if the patient has a history of breast cancer, blood clots, vaginal bleeding or liver dysfunction, Lai said.

Menopausal symptoms are very common, with more than 80 percent of women experiencing some form of discomfort during the perimenopausal transition, which lasts an average of eight years, he said.

Over the past two to three years, the proportion of postmenopausal women using MHT has grown to about 15 to 20 percent, Lai said, adding that it remains lower in Taiwan than the 20 percent or higher in Europe and North America.

While pharmaceutical companies in the US were required to remove certain outdated warnings last year, Taiwan’s labels are more than 20 years old, so the association calls on Taiwan’s Food and Drug Administration to review and update these guidelines, so that women can feel safe getting treatment after a doctor’s assessment and improve their quality of life.

Update menopause drug risks: doctor


LOUD AND PROUD Taiwan might have taken a drubbing against Australia and Japan, but you might not know it from the enthusiasm and numbers of the fans

Taiwan might not be expected to win the World Baseball Classic (WBC) but their fans are making their presence felt in Tokyo, with tens of thousands decked out in the team’s blue, blowing horns and singing songs.

Taiwanese fans have packed out the Tokyo Dome for all three of their games so far and even threatened to drown out home team supporters when their team played Japan on Friday.

They blew trumpets, chanted for their favorite players and had their own cheerleading squad who dance on a stage during the game.

Taiwanese national cheerleading group `CT AMAZE` performs during the World Baseball Classic een Taiwan and Czech Republic at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo yesterday. Photo: AFP

The team struggled to match that exuberance on the field, with early losses to Australia and Japan, but they stomped the Czech Republic 14-0 for their first win yesterday.

Mark Ling, a 46-year-old dentist who had tickets for two of Taiwan’s games, said that baseball enjoyed “insane” popularity in Taiwan.

“It was very difficult to buy any tickets for this series,” he said, after a home run against the Czechs drowned the stadium in cheering.

Taiwan fans roar for their team at WBC


Taiwan man draws ire for inside betting ‘joke’

A Taiwanese man apologized on Friday after saying in a social media post that he worked with Australia to provide scouting reports on Taiwan’s team, enabling Australia’s victory in this year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC), saying it was a joke and that he did not hold any position with foreign teams or Taiwan’s sports training center.

Chen Po-hao (陳柏豪) drew the rage of many Taiwan baseball fans when he posted online on Thursday night, claiming credit for Australia’s 3-0 win over Taiwan in the opening game for Pool C, saying he worked as a physical therapist with the national team and passed on information to the Australians.

In his apology, Chen said that his social media post was intended to be humorous and did not intend to cause a stir.

Players of Taiwan and Australia during the opening ceremony of the World Baseball Classic ahead of their game at the Tokyo Dome on Thursday. Photo: CNA

Some Taiwanese fans called him a “traitor” for selling out Taiwan by providing valuable information, while others called for an investigation and charges of treason against him.

Chen also said he won money betting on Australia’s win in the sports lottery, drawing further anger.

Some called for an investigation, as it is illegal for those employed by the team or in sports-related positions in the government to bet on game outcomes and profit through insider information.

The Ministry of Sports and the National Sports Training Center on Friday said separately there is no record of a “Chen Po-hao” ever being employed as a scout, medical staff or by the training center.


Man given life in prison for fatally abusing stepchild

A New Taipei City man was sentenced to life imprisonment on Friday for fatally abusing his two-year-old stepson, while the child’s mother received a 19-year prison term for failing to stop the violence, according to a ruling by the New Taipei City District Court.

According to the verdict, the man, surnamed Wu (吳), repeatedly burned the child with cigarettes and later attacked him, while the boy’s mother, surnamed Chen (陳), failed to intervene.

Prosecutors said Wu burned the boy’s chest and left arm with a lit cigarette several times at their home in Tucheng District (土城) on Feb. 6 last year.

The New Taipei District Court is pictured in an undated photograph. Photo: Wu Sheng-ju, Taipei Times

On the evening of Feb. 17 last year, Wu slapped the child repeatedly, kicked him, and twice grabbed his legs, lifting him upside down and shaking him before throwing him onto a bed, causing bleeding of the brain, retinal hemorrhage and seizures.

Despite hearing the child crying and screaming, Chen did not stop Wu from assaulting the child, the court said.

The court said that Chen later noticed the boy had bruises on his forehead, abnormally pale skin and unfocused vision, but did not seek medical help.

The following morning, the couple left the child alone at home for about 12 hours while they went to work.

When they returned that night, they found the boy pale, convulsing and unresponsive and took him to the hospital. The child died a month later, after failing to recover.

The citizen judge panel said Wu repeatedly abused a defenseless toddler and showed complete disregard for the child’s life and health, describing his actions as cruel.

The court said Wu had prior convictions, including domestic violence and obstruction of official duties and had repeatedly clashed with detention center staff during custody.

Wu was sentenced to life imprisonment and stripped of civil rights for life for intentionally fatally injuring a child.

Chen said during the trial that she had noticed the boy having seizures and had considered taking him to the hospital, but gave up after Wu objected.

The court said she failed to fulfill her parental responsibility and appeared to prioritize her relationship with Wu over the child’s safety.

Judges said Chen had admitted wrongdoing during restorative justice proceedings with the child’s grandfather and planned to divorce Wu.

Taking those factors into account, the court sentenced Chen to 19 years in prison for abandoning a child in violation of her duty of care, resulting in death.

The ruling can be appealed.


FEATURE: Yilan’s indigenous coffee flavors earn appreciation

Taiwan’s first indigenous coffee exchange platform has been set up in Yilan County to promote distinctively flavored indigenous coffee, with the goal of making indigenous coffee beans a premium on the global market.

About 150 coffee trees were planted in Taiwan during the Japanese colonial period.

Cultivated in the unique environment of Taiwan over the past century, the most widely planted arabica coffee trees have already produced variant varieties, such as typica.

The entrance to the Yilan Style is pictured in an undated photograph Photo: Wang Chun-chi, Taipei Times

Although the planting areas of coffee beans in the county only totaled about 10 hectares, locally grown green coffee beans won accolades at an evaluation held by the platform last year.

The platform was set up last year by the Yilan Style (蘭陽原創館) in collaboration with Lighten Cafe (光覺咖啡), with a coffee bean evaluation held in May last year. Nine indigenous coffee brands from across Taiwan were invited to compete in the event.

The Yilan-based Cloud Red Soil Coffee Estate (雲端紅土咖啡莊園) and Myasa Coffee Estate (迷雅薩咖啡莊園) earned a total of three awards, making Yilan the area with most awards, while the top awards went to Pingtung County’s Taiwu Coffee Production Cooperative (泰武咖啡生產合作社) and Chiayi County’s Gu Bua Kak Estate (牛磨角庄園).

The planting areas of coffee beans amount to more than 1,000 hectares nationwide, with Pingtung, Chiayi and Nantou counties being the main production areas, yielding an annual output value of about NT$1 billion (US$31.5 million) every year.

Coffee plantations in Yilan County are mainly located in Tatung (大同) and Nanao (南澳) areas, totaling about 10 hectares in the area and producing an annual coffee bean production of more than 5 tonnes.

Coffee grown in the region has a mild texture and a lingering aftertaste, as a grass-cover cultivation technique was adopted and the hillside environment has good drainage with significant daily temperature swings.

Cloud Red Soil Coffee Estate coffee farmer Hsu A-jung (許阿榮) grows a 1-hectare farm with about 600 Typica coffee trees in Tatung District’s Kalan Dalah indigenous village and has earned a reputation with 16 years of experience in grass-cover cultivation.

Local climates in Yilan gave slightly varying flavors to his coffee every year and could cause unstable production, Hsu said, adding that the production was good in 2024, but plunged last year.

The coffee trees cultivated by Hsu have big fruit with small coffee beans, with the beans possessing a unique flavor, he said.

The National Ilan University’s Indigenous Student Resource Center director Wang Chin-fa (王進發) said there are more than 10 indigenous coffee varieties in Taiwan since coffee was introduced under Japanese rule.

Although Yilan has relatively low altitudes, its humidity, temperature and drainage conditions are all ideal for coffee and could give locally grown coffee layered aftertastes, he said.

About 50 percent of coffee’s delicious taste is decided by cultivation techniques, 30 percent by roast level, and 20 percent by the brewing process, Wang said.

Yilan Style executive director Wang Chia-hsun (王嘉勳) said the platform was established to engage with more indigenous coffee farmers and to demonstrate various flavors of coffee grown in the hills and mountains of Taiwan.

That helps promote indigenous coffee to the public and bring it further into international markets, he said.

The university also launched training programs for coffee farmers in collaboration with the industry to help build an indigenous coffee industrial chain and continue to make indigenous coffee a premium product.

Lighten Cafe co-founder Hsia Lien-kuang (夏連光), a Truku born in Hualien who moved to Yilan with his wife seven years ago, is an enthusiast for pour-over coffee and devotes himself to promoting premium indigenous coffee.

He and his wife co-founded Lighten Cafe and visited many indigenous coffee farmers around Taiwan — including among the Paiwan, Bunun, Atayal and Amis people — to help promote and market their indigenous coffee, he said.

The visibility of indigenous coffee remains to be seen in the local market, which is dominated by imported coffee beans, Hsia said.

A hand-brewing exchange area has been set up at the Yilan Style where Hsia runs workshops on “Store Manager’s Day” that he said “allows visitors to experience the joy of hand brewing, while enjoying the sights and scents, as well as the happiness of being surrounded by the aroma of coffee.”


Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) said yesterday the company aims to hire 8,000 more employees this year to meet its expansion needs, and plans to pay an average annual salary of NT$2.2 million (US$69,449) to new engineers holding a master’s degree.

The world’s largest contract chipmaker said it has launched a recruitment campaign in Taiwan, including a job fair held at National Taiwan University (NTU) yesterday.

TSMC said the new hires, including engineers and technical staff, will be stationed in its plants in Taoyuan, Hsinchu, Miaoli, Taichung, Chiayi, Tainan and Kaohsiung.

People attend the annual job fair on National Taiwan University’s campus yesterday. A total of 347 domestic and international companies participated this year, with 450 booths and over 40,000 job vacancies offered, the organizers said. Photo: Chen Yi-kuan, Taipei Times

The chipmaker said it needs professionals in a wide range of areas, such as electrical engineering, electronics, optoelectronics, physics, materials, chemical engineering, mechanical engineering, environmental engineering, industrial engineering, engineering management, business management, human resources, and accounting.

The chipmaker added that due to its efforts to push for digital transformation and AI and big data applications, the company will seek talent in emerging technologies.

After the job fair at NTU, TSMC will hold similar events in other universities across Taiwan and five additional online recruitment events.

Meanwhile, TSMC also announced an internship program for the upcoming summer vacation and will take applications from students in their third year of university or higher before May 8.

It said students studying master’s and Ph.D. programs will be prioritized.

TSMC to hire 8,000 workers in 2026


Traditional Palauan canoe arrives in Kaohsiung

A traditional voyaging canoe from Palau arrived at Kaohsiung Port yesterday, where Taiwan’s Ocean Affairs Council (OAC) held a ceremony to welcome the crew making an ambitious Pacific voyage guided entirely by traditional navigation.

The vessel, Alingano Maisu, set sail from Palau on Feb. 15 on what the council described as the largest voyage of its kind, a four-month journey covering about 6,200 nautical miles across the western Pacific.

The canoe is captained by master navigator Sesario Sewralur, who leads a 13-member crew from Palau, Taiwan, the United States and the Federated States of Micronesia.

Crew members of the Alingano Maisu from Palau are welcomed at a ceremony hosted by Taiwan’s Ocean Affairs Council at Kaohsiung Port yesterday. Photo: CNA

Speaking at the ceremony, Sewralur thanked Taiwan for its warm welcome.

Sewralur said a canoe crossing the ocean brings people together as one family. “One ocean, one family.”

Taiwan is the first stop for the Alingano Maisu, which will continue to Okinawa, Guam, Saipan, as well as Satawal and Yap in the Federated States of Micronesia, before returning to Palau.

According to the OAC, the crew navigates without modern instruments, instead reading winds and ocean currents, observing stars and celestial patterns, and interpreting signs from marine life to determine their course.

OAC Deputy Minister Wu Hsin-hsiu (吳欣修) said the voyage demonstrates the depth and precision of Austronesian seafaring knowledge passed down through generations.

During their stay in Kaohsiung, the crew will host cultural exchanges and maritime education activities with Indigenous groups, sailing communities and academic institutions, the council said.

Earlier yesterday, the canoe was escorted toward Kaohsiung from waters near Dapeng Bay by sailboats from Taiwanese universities and sailing groups.


Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim, top, center, poses with other officials and female athletes at the opening ceremony of the “Girls, Strike it Out” Female and Youth Athletes’ Safety Sports and Injury Prevention Camp in Taipei yesterday. Setbacks are a driving force that makes us stronger, Hsiao said in a speech, adding that she hopes the athletes would reach their goals.

Sports strength


Wall Street sees AI’s ‘creative destruction’ coming

Even if firms are not yet cutting jobs or wages, they are trimming healthcare and remote work, a researcher said, adding that ‘these side benefits is what the companies go after first, before they go after reducing your paycheck’

A new worry has been rippling across the stock market lately: Entire businesses, not just their employees, might be thrown out of work. While most economists say fears of an artificial intelligence (AI) job apocalypse are overblown, seismic shifts have happened in the past after big tech breakthroughs.

The IT revolution of the 1990s led to a surge in productivity that sped up the US economy for several years. It also rendered companies or even industries largely redundant — from travel agents and stockbrokers to classified advertising and newspapers, or video rental stores.

Economists expect AI would deliver higher productivity, which is key to raising growth rates in the long run.

A trader blows a chewing gum bubble as he works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday. Photo: AFP

However, investors are growing nervous about what damage might be done on the way, in capital markets as well as labor markets — especially because AI threatens disruptions on a broader scale than the Internet boom.

“Is this time bigger? Yes,” said Anton Korinek, an AI expert at the University of Virginia, adding that it is perhaps by a factor of 10 bigger.

“The key difference from the 1990s is that the Internet only disrupted information distribution,” Korinek said. “AI disrupts cognitive production at large. That’s a much bigger economic surface area.”

To be sure, all of this is early-days speculation over a fast-changing and largely untested technology, whose ultimate promise is to make workers more productive.

Productivity is essentially a measure of how much output workers can deliver with the available tools, so it tends to surge upward when someone invents important new ones such as the Internet or AI.

The trend has been ticking up. After big swings in the COVID-19 pandemic period, productivity has grown at an average pace of 2.6 percent since the start of 2023. That is more than double the average for the decade through 2019.

There is intense debate over how much of this acceleration is due to AI, but even analysts who reckon the new technology is not yet making a big contribution mostly expect it would do so before long.

A more productive workforce drives the kind of efficiency gains that can allow corporations and their employees to boost earnings, without triggering inflation. Historically, economies adapt to big tech breakthroughs — creating new industries and professions that nobody could have envisioned before — and living standards rise.

That is the long-run view — which smooths out lots of bumps on the road.

”Having some boom-bust in a sector is normal,” said Simon Johnson, the Nobel prize-winning economist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

“Maybe even how it has to be,” he added.

However, as companies go under, it can create wider risks — especially if the failed businesses borrowed lots of money, Johnson said.

“What you don’t want is to infect the credit, and you definitely don’t want to get inside the banking system,” he added.

As of now, on US capital markets, what has become known as the “AI scare trade” is barely a blip.

The S&P 500 is up by about two-thirds since the release of ChatGPT in November 2022. A big chunk of those gains has been driven by the surging value of AI companies and their suppliers — giants such as Meta Platforms Inc and Nvidia Corp — which creates one set of risks if their technology disappoints.

However, there is another set — the one behind recent market wobbles — which is different. It stems from the possibility that AI does deliver the promised productivity leap, and then some. That idea, captured in a research note by the little-known firm Citrini, sent the S&P into a brief nosedive two weeks ago.

Citrini’s scenario of massive white-collar layoffs driven by AI was basically science fiction, set in 2028. There is no sign of anything like that now, with US unemployment at historically low levels.

Still, Columbia Business School’s Daniel Keum, who has studied how automation technologies such as AI change the balance within firms, said he saw signs of a shift.

Keum’s research, based on comments in earnings calls and annual reports, found that bosses become more likely to refer to their employees as costs, among other evidence of a tilt in power away from workers.

Even if companies are not yet cutting jobs or wages, they are trimming in areas such as healthcare, remote work and even free snacks, Keum said. “These side benefits is what the companies go after first, before they go after reducing your paycheck.”

When businesses can cut payroll costs, because technology enables them to do more with less, that is often good news for their profits and shareholders.

Take Block, the fintech firm run by Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, said on Feb. 26 that it was slashing almost half its staff in a bet on AI productivity.

Its shares are up more than 15 percent since then.

However, last month also offered an example of how productivity gains can have a downside for investors — involving the storied International Business Machines Corp (IBM). The start-up Anthropic said its AI tool can do something that once needed “armies of consultants”: modernize COBOL, a dated programming language run on IBM computers. IBM shares plunged the most in a quarter-century, before recouping most of the losses.

Past technology booms have seen household-name businesses fall by the wayside — such as camera-maker Kodak and video-rental chain Blockbuster, left behind by the Internet. It is all part of what the economist Joseph Schumpeter called the “creative destruction” which leads to progress. Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Tom Barkin referenced that phrase last week when asked if the Fed should be trying to counter AI disruption to businesses and the labor market.

“That’s been happening for hundreds of years in this country,” he said. “It’s part of the essence of capitalism.”

That is not necessarily reassuring for industries — and their investors and employees — confronting the short-term risk. Korinek listed some of them, including back-office services, content production, customer support, legal and financial analysis, and coding.

“Eventually, the disruption will extend to any firm whose competitive advantage lies in human expertise that AI can replicate,” he said. “The transition period may involve stranded assets, debt overhang and the potential for sharp market corrections.”


The EU on Wednesday unveiled new “made in Europe” rules to bolster the bloc’s industries against fierce competition from China, in a push held up for months by wrangling over measures some see as overly protectionist.

Concerning strategic sectors including cars, green tech and steel, the proposal is a key part of an EU drive to regain its competitive edge, reduce its dependencies and stave off job losses.

“It is a change in doctrine — one that was unthinkable just a few months ago,” European Commission Executive Vice President for Prosperity and Industrial Strategy Stephane Sejourne told a news conference.

European Commission Executive Vice President for Prosperity and Industrial Strategy Stephane Sejourne unveils the EU’s “industrial accelerator act” at the commission headquarters in Brussels on Wednesday. Photo: AFP

Broadly, the rules aim to ensure that public and foreign investments support manufacturing inside the 27-nation bloc, an EU official said.

To that end, companies that want public money must meet minimum thresholds for EU-made parts and subject large investments from dominant foreign firms to conditions including employing EU workers, they said.

The European Commission said the package aims to bring manufacturing’s share of EU GDP to 20 percent by 2035, up from about 14 percent in 2024.

At stake are about 600,000 jobs Brussels predicts could be lost over a decade unless the bloc reverses its industrial decline.

Initially expected last year, the measures strongly backed by France were pushed back several times due to disagreements, with some arguing they run counter to the EU’s pro-free-trade spirit.

Much of the discord revolved around the geographical scope of “made in Europe.”

Skeptics, including the EU’s largest economy Germany, said trade partners should be included in the definition under a “made with Europe” approach.

Brussels settled for a compromise based around the principle of reciprocity.

Countries that have deals with the EU allowing for European companies to access public money on a par with local firms in the sectors concerned would be brought into the fold.

Others — such as Canada — that give preference to local producers would be left out unless they change tack, the official said, adding that the rules would be used as a trade tool to negotiate better access for EU companies.

“We will exclude those who do not play by the rules or who pose a risk to our economic security,” Sejourne said.

Ahead of publication, the plans had raised concerns among foreign partners including the UK, Japan and Turkey.

A full list of who was in and who was out was not yet available.

The French government called the package “a first step” in the right direction, but said it was “not yet sufficiently protective of our interests.”

The “made in Europe” requirements, which also seek to boost industrial decarbonization, would apply to “strategic sectors,” namely: steel, cement, aluminum, cars, and net zero technologies.

Governments putting money behind infrastructure projects would have to ensure they include a minimum share of European low-carbon steel, cement and aluminum, among other provisions. Electric-vehicle (EV) manufacturers would have to make sure at least 70 percent of their cars’ components are made in the EU to access public money.

Similar rules would apply to batteries, solar, wind and nuclear.

The proposal, formally known as the “industrial accelerator act,” also aims to ensure foreign companies partner with European firms to set up shop in the bloc.

To do so, it imposes conditions on foreign investments of more than 100 million euros (US$116.2 million) in “emerging strategic sectors” such as batteries and EVs.

These kick in for investors from countries that hold more than 40 percent of the related global manufacturing capacity — an implicit reference to Chinese dominance.

They require foreign investors to meet four of six conditions including employing at least 50 percent EU workers, holding no more than 49 percent of the related EU company, and passing on technological know-how.

For many, the plans are necessary to boost the development of EU green tech and shield manufacturers from unfair competition from heavily subsidized Chinese rivals.

“The EU is embracing long-overdue economic realism and adapting itself to the new brutal global trade reality,” said Neil Makaroff of the Strategic Perspectives climate think tank.

However, others warn about bogging down companies with extra red tape and costs.

“Nobody needs another ‘industrial bureaucracy act,’” lamented Dirk Jandura of German foreign trade association BGA. “If companies are forced to use more expensive European components instead of relying on competitive imports from the global market, their competitiveness suffers.”

European steel industry group Eurofer said the act was a “welcome start,” but more was needed to ensure support for steel “melted and poured” in Europe, not in third countries.

The proposal is subject to approval by EU states and parliament.

EU unveils ‘made in Europe’ push


Bank of England to scenario plan an AI shock amid fears

The Bank of England (BOE) is planning to war-game the potential economic and financial impact of a full-blown artificial intelligence (AI) shock amid fears that the technology would cost vast numbers of jobs and cut through a swathe of businesses.

The British central bank would also consider whether to incorporate the assessments into its broader banking stress tests to capture a possible surge in household and company loan defaults, and the damage inflicted on lenders, a person familiar with the matter said.

Concerns about the economic threat posed by AI have rocketed after Anthropic chief executive officer Dario Amodei said that AI “could displace half of all entry-level white collar jobs in the next one to five years.”

A direction sign is pictured in front of the Bank of England in London on Feb. 3 last year. Photo: Reuters

A dystopian scenario published last month by Citrini Research sparked a brief market selloff, and fears of a jobs bloodbath intensified when financial technology firm Block Inc slashed its workforce by almost a half citing AI — with cofounder Jack Dorsey warning other firms would inevitably follow.

In the UK, the British Office for Budget Responsibility this week calculated AI-led “technological displacement” could result in an additional 500,000 unemployed, no extra economic growth and ￡9 billion (US$12.08 billion) more in government borrowing a year.

The BOE has warned about the financial consequences of a collapse in the AI stock valuations and is keeping a close eye on the use of AI within the financial sector, but has made little comment on the potential for wider economic disruption.

The person said the BOE would consider the macroeconomic and core financial market consequences of AI adoption under various scenarios, adding that those would feed into the normal process of deciding on commercial bank stress testing scenarios.

A BOE spokesperson declined to comment.

National Institute of Economic and Social Research director David Aikman said the bank should be running a series of AI exploratory scenarios to prepare for the worst, having done similar planning on climate change and Brexit in the past.

While the BOE is unlikely to have the tools to address an AI economic shock, it has the expertise and the resources to do the macroeconomic modeling for the British Treasury, which has many more policy options at its disposal, he said.

“Scenario planning would be of enormous value. It could help the government think about how it would respond,” Aikman said.

In January, British Minister of State for Investment Jason Stockwood told the Financial Times that the British government has discussed introducing a universal basic income for industries hit by AI.

University College London economics professor Wendy Carlin also urged the BOE to start war-gaming AI-led economic risks.

It was “a sensible thing for them to be doing,” she said.

The bank currently runs banking stress tests once every two years to see how resilient the system is against extreme risks.

Speaking at an event held by Elgin Advisory and the Society for Professional Economists on Friday, Ken Rogoff, Harvard University economics professor and former IMF chief economist, said US tariffs were a “head fake, making you look at something else when it’s not the big show going on” compared with “the job losses, the existential threats” of AI.

At the same event, BOE chief economist Huw Pill said the bank does not have the tools to rescue the economy from an AI catastrophe.

“What you’re really talking about is a world where, on average, people are better off, but there’s much greater inequality. Monetary policy has to deal with the aggregate,” he said, referring to its main remit of keeping inflation at 2 percent.

The government has “many other policies,” he added.

BOE Governor Andrew Bailey, an economic historian, compared AI to the Industrial Revolution and said it was likely to displace jobs.

“We need to be prepared for that,” he told the BBC in December last year.


Last month, amid doubts about her eligibility to serve as a public servant, Li Zhenxiu (李貞秀) was sworn into office as a legislator-at-large for the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP). The ceremony, which followed certification by the Central Election Commission (CEC), was thought to be the end of the controversy. After all, Taiwan is perceived to be governed by the rule of law. While that perception is increasingly valid, it is easy to forget how recently the nation emerged from an authoritarian regime and martial law. Laws are more clearly defined, and are better enforced and subject to oversight than in the past.

In Li’s case, her status was initially not clearly defined, but scrutiny showed it fell short of legal requirements. If the TPP were responsible, it would not appeal on the grounds of a lack of former legal clarity, but should allow the case to be used to improve clarity.

Li was born in China and has lived in Taiwan for more than three decades, marrying a Taiwanese in 1999. She says she loves Taiwan and the Republic of China (ROC), and has sworn an oath of loyalty in front of grand justices. She says that she submitted her application to the authorities in her hometown to renounce her People’s Republic of China (PRC) citizenship, but that the application was rejected.

This should come as a surprise to nobody, especially since the reason for renouncing it was to assume ROC citizenship, while the PRC not only refuses to recognize the existence of the ROC, but also takes great pains to persuade the rest of the world that the ROC does not exist.

The question of whether Li can be believed, that she “loves Taiwan,” or that she is loyal to the ROC is beside the point. It is unfortunate that the PRC rejected her renunciation of citizenship, but the law in Taiwan is clear, whether it be Article 21 of the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例), which stipulates that Chinese nationals can run for or hold public office in Taiwan after holding a household registration in Taiwan for 10 years, and that this 10-year period begins after they submit proof of renouncing their Chinese residency, or Article 20 of the Nationality Act (國籍法), which prohibits people who hold dual nationality from serving in public office.

Remonstrations that the legal requirements are unfair in Li’s case, given her attempt to renounce her citizenship and her avowal of loyalty to the nation, are irrelevant, as the law must be applied universally if it is to be fair. It cannot be applied to individual cases, or depending on the whims of a political party.

The TPP believes that Li deserves an exception, and could rightly point to the CEC’s certification. However, it is worth asking why it insists on Li’s nomination, instead of settling on a less controversial choice, as she was not directly elected. It is also worth asking how the CEC certified her, given the legal questions.

On Tuesday, the CEC announced that it plans to file a lawsuit to question the legality of Li’s election, saying that it was unable to verify her lack of qualification to run in 2023, as it only reviewed her national ID and household registration data, which do not state whether a candidate has renounced Chinese citizenship. This is an absurd excuse, but goes back to the former lack of legal clarity and failure of interdepartmental communication.

The CEC also said that it would resolve the case when a full committee can be convened, which is currently impossible, as it only has four sitting members and needs at least five to convene a session.

A vote on new nominees is slated for Friday next week, and if those nominees are rejected the case “will revert to the Nationality Act,” presumably meaning that Li’s qualification to serve would be declared invalid.

On Friday, Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said that the legal loopholes plaguing Li’s case would be closed in anticipation of the nine-in-one elections in November.

Finally, there might be some legal clarity on the issue.

EDITORIAL: A lack of legal clarity


Beijing has a three-body problem

Every analyst watching Iran’s succession crisis is asking who would replace supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Yet, the real question is whether China has learned enough from the Persian Gulf to survive a war over Taiwan.

Beijing purchases roughly 90 percent of Iran’s exported crude — some 1.61 million barrels per day last year — and holds a US$400 billion, 25-year cooperation agreement binding it to Tehran’s stability. However, this is not simply the story of a patron protecting an investment. China has spent years engineering a sanctions-evasion architecture that was never really about Iran — it was about Taiwan. The next 60 days in the Persian Gulf could reveal more about China’s risk calculus in the Indo-Pacific region than any number of Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) military drills — because the exam is no longer theoretical. It is being graded in real time.

China’s window to shape Iran’s succession is closing. Beijing holds no formal seat in the Assembly of Experts, the clerical body that would elect the next Supreme Leader — but formal seats are beside the point when you purchase nine-tenths of a country’s only serious export. China’s real leverage runs through the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), which the US think tank Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) identifies as the dominant institutional force shaping the post-Khamenei transition — and any successor, CFR notes, “will almost certainly need the IRGC’s backing to govern effectively regardless of formal religious credentials.” Beijing has been quietly cultivating that relationship for years, a campaign that accelerated sharply after former Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi’s death in 2024. The calls are being made right now. The generals are being reminded of the US$400 billion on the table, the yuan payment terms and the infrastructure pipeline. China is not lobbying a theocracy; it is making an offer to a military that knows how to count.

Every week without a clear successor is a week in which factional competition could produce an outcome hostile to the partnership — or an IRGC adventurism in the Gulf that Beijing cannot control. China needs a transactional successor, not an ideological one. That window does not stay open indefinitely, and it is a chokepoint that cuts both ways.

Some 84 percent of the oil transiting the Strait of Hormuz flows to Asian markets, according to the US Energy Information Administration, and China alone imported approximately 5 million barrels per day through the strait early last year — representing roughly 40 to 45 percent of its total crude imports. An Iranian threat to close Hormuz does not primarily threaten Houston or Rotterdam. It throttles Tianjin, Qingdao and Zhoushan.

As energy security analyst Ravi Balakrishnan warned in the immediate aftermath of Khamenei’s death: “A closure or serious disruption of Hormuz would deliver a severe shock to Beijing — prices could surge toward [US]$100 to [US]$130 per barrel. Such a spike would squeeze China’s industrial base and growth targets at a delicate economic moment.”

China ran a crude surplus of some 113 million barrels last year and has been building strategic reserves, but stockpiles buy time, not immunity. A prolonged closure hands Washington a template for supply-chain attrition that could be applied in a different ocean to a different crisis.

This places Beijing in a trap Washington has designed with some care: Either China publicly restrains Tehran, legitimizing US coercive power in the Gulf and setting a precedent for future pressure in other straits, or it stays silent and allows the chokepoint feeding its own industrial base to remain under threat. There is no clean exit; each choice costs something. Which one Beijing makes would tell us a great deal about how it intends to manage the next chokepoint on its map — one that lies between China and Taiwan.

China built its Iran sanctions-evasion infrastructure as a Taiwan rehearsal. The Persian Gulf crisis is grading the exam.

Beijing established a dedicated interagency working group reporting to Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰) — Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) chief architect for ring-fencing China’s economy from Western sanctions — specifically to study how China would survive a hard-hitting sanctions regime, drawing explicitly on Russia’s experience with an eye toward Taiwan contingencies. The dark-fleet tankers running with disabled automatic identification system (AIS) transponders, the ship-to-ship transfers conducted in open international waters, the yuan payment loops bypassing SWIFT, the gold settlements leaving no dollar trail — none of this was improvised under US pressure. It was a prototype, and Iran was the testing environment.

Washington is stress-testing that prototype at scale. The secondary sanctions campaign targeting Chinese teapot refineries purchasing Iranian crude is, from Beijing’s war-gaming desk, a live simulation of the financial pressure architecture that would be deployed in a Taiwan contingency. Every secondary sanction that successfully alters Chinese purchasing behavior identifies a crack in the evasion system. Everyone who fails hands Beijing’s planners a gap to widen before the next round.

The most important — and least discussed — implication follows directly: China has a strategic incentive to keep this crisis moderately alive. A fully resolved crisis shuts down the testing environment. A fully escalated crisis, with Hormuz closed and oil at US$130, damages China too severely to be useful.

The optimal temperature for Beijing’s Taiwan planners is precisely where we are now: a slow burn that keeps the evasion architecture under operational stress, reveals the outer limits of Western enforcement capacity and imposes no cost severe enough to force Beijing’s hand before it is ready.

That reframing changes everything about how we should read Chinese behavior in this crisis. When Beijing appears passive, it might not be paralyzed — it might be collecting data. When it appears to restrain Tehran, it might not be cooperating with Washington — it might be calibrating exactly how much compliance buys how much goodwill, to be deployed in a future negotiation about a different strait entirely.

Conventional intelligence on Chinese strategic intentions focuses on military signals: carrier deployments, amphibious exercise footprints, missile test trajectories. These signals matter, but they are rehearsed performances, engineered for ambiguity. What China does in the Persian Gulf over the next 60 days is far less choreographed — and therefore far more honest.

The answer would not come in a communique; it would come in AIS transponder data in the Gulf of Oman, in yuan-clearing volumes in Shanghai and in the messages Beijing sends — or pointedly does not send — to Tehran’s transitional council. It would come down to whether Chinese teapot refineries quietly trim Iranian crude intake under US pressure or brazenly maintain it. It would come in whether Beijing’s dark fleet accelerates transfers as a show of defiance, or pulls back to probe Washington’s enforcement appetite.

Three dilemmas — a succession gamble, an energy chokepoint and a Taiwan rehearsal — are converging on the same 60-day window. The Persian Gulf has always been described as a Middle Eastern story with global energy implications. It is, in fact, an Indo-Pacific story with a deadline.

Aadil Brar is an analyst covering Asian geopolitics and international security.


Mideast conflict not collapse of world order

The commentaries by Deborah Haynes on Sky News, titled “The US war against Iran brings a new era of conflict and peril,” and Richard Haass in the Taipei Times (“Donald Trump’s risky war of choice in Iran”, March 3, page 7) said the world tilted into “peril” and “disarray.” They said that the US-Israeli strikes have replaced diplomacy with missiles, create a dangerous precedent for autocrats and embarked on a “war of choice” that cannot succeed.

This framing sounds principled. It is not. It is a defense of a status quo that has long since failed.

First, we must reject the moral equivalence between aggression and enforcement. Both critics say this strike hands a “rhetorical win” to leaders such as Russian President Vladimir Putin or Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平).

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a war of annexation; the strike against the Iranian regime is a war of accountability. To say that a targeted strike against a regime that exports terror, pursues nuclear brinkmanship and hangs its own citizens is “the same” as the conquest of a peaceful neighbor is to flatten the moral distinctions that make international law worth defending.

Second, Haass said this is a “war of choice,” saying diplomacy still held promise. For whom? For the Iranian people who were ruthlessly suppressed during the January protests? For regional neighbors targeted by Iranian-made drones?

When a regime uses the “fog of negotiations” to advance its ballistic and nuclear programs, continuing diplomacy is complicity. A rules-based order does not collapse because a violator is finally confronted; it collapses because the rules carry no cost for those who break them.

Third, the lament about “limited means” failing to achieve “regime change” misses the point of deterrence. Critics such as Haass warn that decapitation rarely works. This might be true in a vacuum, but by destroying missile infrastructure and removing the ideological architect of regional chaos, the US is not just hoping for a new government; it is physically stripping a hostile actor of its ability to project violence. The goal is not to build a democracy overnight; it is to ensure that the regime’s “terrorist proxies” can no longer destabilize the globe with impunity.

Fourth, the argument that US action in Iran distracts from the Indo-Pacific region ignores the reality that deterrence is indivisible. Beijing has spent billions turning Iran into a “strategic asset” designed to divert US resources. By dismantling this pillar of China’s regional strategy, the US is signaling that it can strike swiftly in one theater while maintaining its commitments in another. If Chinese planners conclude that the US would no longer be paralyzed by the fear of escalation, the deterrent landscape in the Taiwan Strait becomes significantly sharper.

Finally, the argument that this action “lowers the threshold” for force reverses cause and effect. What truly lowers the threshold for war is inaction. Decades of hesitation have allowed the Strait of Hormuz to become a site where 20 percent of the world’s oil supply can be threatened. Deterrence does not emerge from hand-wringing about “dangerous precedents.” It emerges from established, credible limits.

The old world order, upheld by a paralyzed UN had already been hollowed out by the very autocrats they fear could be emboldened. Calling this moment the collapse of international order misunderstands the fragility of that order and the responsibilities required to sustain it. If anything defines this era, it is not the reckless abandonment of norms — but the end of impunity.

John Cheng is a retired businessman from Hong Kong now living in Taiwan.


EDITORIAL CARTOON

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has long been expansionist and contemptuous of international law. Under Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), the CCP regime has become more despotic, coercive and punitive.As part of its strategy to annex Taiwan, Beijing has sought to erase the island democracy’s international identity by bribing countries to sever diplomatic ties with Taipei. One by one, China has peeled away Taiwan’s remaining diplomatic partners, leaving just 12 countries (mostly small developing states) and the Vatican recognizing Taiwan as a sovereign nation. Taiwan’s formal international space has shrunk dramatically.Yet even as Beijing has scored diplomatic successes, its overreach


Instead of spending billions on dementia care, try a brain workoutTwo studies that started in the late 1990s with the goal of better understanding how lifestyle, genetics, the environment and other factors affect people’s chances of developing dementia are yielding real insights

If ever you needed a nudge to give your brain a workout, new research underscoring the benefits of “brain training” should offer fresh motivation.

The two long-term studies add to a growing body of evidence that people can boost their brain health by doing mentally stimulating activities, such as learning a language, visiting a museum or playing chess. They also show that consciously working to build cognitive resiliency can delay the onset of dementia for years.

That is an important message as the US grapples with the growing challenge of Alzheimer’s disease, which affects about 7 million Americans and counting.

Both studies were part of a wave of trials started in the US in the late 1990s with the goal of better understanding how lifestyle, genetics, the environment and other factors affect people’s chances of developing dementia. Decades later, they are yielding real insights.

For the first study, researchers mined decades of Medicare data from roughly 2,000 people who had been recruited in the late 1990s to participate in the Advanced Cognitive Training for Independent and Vital Elderly (ACTIVE) trial. The study had tested whether certain types of brain games might boost brain health. People were sorted into groups, each assigned one of three computer games that tested either speed, memory or reasoning.

Participants spent an hour playing the game twice a week for six weeks, and then did the same thing again after one and three years. That made it more than a fun little challenge, like your daily crossword or sudoku. It was hard work. The payoff, though, was substantial. Twenty years later, about 25 percent fewer people in the speed training group developed dementia compared with the people who were not offered the intervention.

Interestingly, the memory and reasoning games did not have the same effect. Researchers suspect the difference is related to the type of exercise the speed game required of the brain. It tested people’s ability to juggle several tasks at once — and unlike with the memory and reasoning tests, players were not told how to improve their results. And the better they performed on the test, the more difficult it got.

Study coauthor Marilyn Albert, who directs the Johns Hopkins Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, hypothesizes that implicit forms of learning improve brain connectivity, or the ability of the different parts of the brain to work together.

The booster sessions years on strengthened those links, she says.

Ideally, future research would explain the underlying biology of how such a game reduces dementia risk. That does not require running another multi-decade trial. When the ACTIVE study began, scientists had yet to invent the brain imaging techniques that allow researchers to observe changes and signs of disease in real time.

Now, though, it would be possible to conduct short-term studies that pair the games with imaging and perhaps blood markers, offering deeper insight into what is happening in people’s brains when they play these games, Albert says. New research could also potentially lead to even more effective brain games.

Meanwhile, a separate study showed that building a resilient brain is a lifelong endeavor — and that pursuing mentally stimulating activities early in life can make a difference decades down the road.

Rush University Medical Center’s Memory and Aging Project followed nearly 2,000 people to understand how their genetics and environment affect their chances of getting Alzheimer’s.

Participants were asked detailed questions about the types of experiences they had across all stages of life — things like whether they were read to as a child, visited a library or played chess. Researchers found that the people who were most engaged in enriching activities throughout their lives had much lower odds of developing Alzheimer’s. And among those who did develop the disease, people who spent a lot of time on intellectually enriching activities were healthier for five more years, on average, than those who did not spend as much time at the mental gym.

About half of the participants in the Rush study donated their brains to science, which offered another fascinating insight. Researchers found that even people whose brains were coated with the telltale plaques associated with Alzheimer’s benefited from a lifetime of mental workouts.

In other words, two people might have the same pathology in their brain, but one “could handle more wear and tear before symptoms appear,” explains Andrea Zammit, a study coauthor and neuropsychologist at the Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Center in Chicago.

One of the more encouraging findings out of the Rush study is that although the benefits were greater when someone seeks out intellectual stimulation throughout their life, people still were helped by enrichment in old age.

As Zammit puts it: “It’s never too late to start.”

Of course, getting started can be challenging. The Rush study suggests the US should be doing more to ensure everyone has access to enriching environments, whether that is libraries and museums, or through programs targeting early childhood or older adults.

Meanwhile, as studies like Albert’s point to short-term interventions that can stave off dementia, doctors and policymakers should be considering how to integrate those into a healthcare system often more focused on treatment than prevention. After all, if these efforts ultimately allow more older adults to live independently for longer, they could chip away at the nearly US$800 billion the US spends on dementia care each year, while improving countless lives.

The public is hopefully getting the message that we do have some control over our brain health. Proactive individuals might decide to pursue more structured activities — older adults wanting a workout for their brain can try a version of the speed game that participants played in the ACTIVE trial — while others might simply be more intentional about regularly opening up a book or challenging a friend to a game of Scrabble.

In our digital age, the growing research on brain health is also a good reminder that while scrolling and posting might offer a quick dopamine hit, real engagement — that is, focused, purposeful activities — offers a much bigger reward.

Lisa Jarvis is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering biotech, healthcare and the pharmaceutical industry. Previously, she was executive editor of Chemical & Engineering News. 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.


It turns out, the biggest financial victim of US President Donald Trump’s decision to strike Iran is not the S&P 500, but equity markets across North Asia.

Panic selling was sweeping across Hong Kong, Seoul and Tokyo on Wednesday. South Korea’s benchmark KOSPI headed for its biggest two-day drop since 2008.

The selloff might have come as somewhat of a surprise for investors. North Asia is known for its dependence on oil and natural gas imports, but if we are talking about an economic meltdown, the Iran conflict might be pushing Europe into an energy crisis first. In addition, unless the closure of the Strait of Hormuz gets prolonged, economies in the region have got buffers thanks to their national reserves. Japan has an estimated 254 days of oil stockpile; China’s domestic gas holdings are worth about an entire year of its Gulf imports.

So why are North Asian markets so vulnerable?

Often, steep market declines have a lot more to do with flows than fundamentals. Prior to the Iranian crisis, hot money was flooding into Asia, looking for semiconductor and hard tech plays as global investors rotated out of software companies into artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure. The broadening of the AI trade laid the foundation for this week’s rout.

Indeed, until now, the investment narratives were all for Asian hard tech. Samsung Electronics Co and SK Hynix Inc were believed to have entered a years-long super cycle, after both companies said that the supply crunch in memory chips would continue until next year.

Meanwhile, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s strong earnings bolstered the case that US hyperscalers would keep on spending, ensuring windfalls for Asian suppliers.

No surprise that hot money chased after the few winners. In the US, the US$16 billion iShares MSCI South Korea ETF recorded more than US$1.2 billion in inflows in the week before the Middle East turmoil, the most in the fund’s 25-year history. In South Korea, retail investors, who for decades skirted the blue-chip KOSPI, went on a buying spree. The number of active accounts and margin loans both hit record highs.

In other words, the Asian AI infrastructure trade was getting crowded.

As the Iran conflict drags on, the tide is starting to recede. A sudden strengthening of the US dollar is eroding the case for investing in emerging markets. Meanwhile, there are worries that local benchmark interest rates will have to rise as an extended oil shock pushes up inflation. Higher money market rates raise the cost of margin-financed trading. Until recently, financial conditions in South Korea were at multi-decade lows.

It is perhaps best to consider the selloff as a painful, but healthy cleansing. It deleverages and chases away momentum-driven speculators. What is left will be those who care about company earnings and reasonable valuations. After all, upward earnings revisions are a lot stronger in Asia than in the US.

International diversification has been a major theme this year as global asset managers look to reduce their heavy exposure to US assets, but the one-way traffic into North Asia has been so heavy that an exogenous shock thousands of miles away is creating sharp reversals. Unfortunately, the “sell America” trade has morphed into a blanket selling of Asian assets.

Shuli Ren is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering Asian markets. A former investment banker, she was a markets reporter for Barron’s. She is a CFA charterholder. 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.

Why the Iran war has prompted panic selling in North Asia