US president-elect Donald Trump made Taiwan a focal point of his 2024 campaign, advocating increased defence spending by the island and casting a critical eye on its semiconductor dominance. While some Taiwanese officials have dismissed these statements as campaign rhetoric, Trump’s repeated calls for Taiwan to pay “protection fees” and increase its defence spending to … Read more
Beijing has accused Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te of escalating hostility after his recent comments that the People’s Republic of China could not be the island’s motherland. Zhu Fenglian, a spokeswoman for the mainland’s Taiwan Affairs Office, said Lai had not only tried to deceive and intimidate the Taiwan people, harming their interests, but was … Read more
His promotion of the “mutual non-subordination” theory to define Taiwan’s relationship with Beijing has raised concerns among observers, who fear it could further strain cross-strait ties and potentially lead to conflict. In his three major speeches on cross-strait relations since taking office, Lai has consistently stressed his view that the two sides of the Taiwan … Read more
Since the pandemic, these places have been joined by trendy bars and restaurants that seat only a handful of people. With their advent, Tiao Tong’s reputation as Taipei’s red light district has faded somewhat. The grilled eel with rice draws long queues of customers at Fei Qian Wu. Photo: Mavis Teo Tiao Tong’s boundaries are … Read more
The remark was a reference to a long-abandoned plan by the Nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shek to “recover” the mainland after his Kuomintang (KMT) forces lost a civil war with the Communists and fled to the island in 1949 to set up an interim government. Before he died in 1975, Chiang had vowed to use Taiwan … Read more
“Removing the cult of personality and ending worshipping of authoritarianism is the goal of promoting transitional justice at the present stage,” the ministry said earlier in a statement clarifying the decision. Taiwan’s culture minister, Li Yuan, celebrated the move in a Facebook post on Monday. “A small step like this took 44 years to achieve,” … Read more
Analysts caution that if implemented, the push to remove the statues might not only sow divisions within the military but also potentially jeopardise the island in the face of a cross-strait conflict. On Monday, Lai will become the island’s new leader, succeeding his independence-leaning DPP colleague Tsai Ing-wen, who is completing her second four-year presidential … Read more
Taiwan’s government will remove all remaining statues of late president Chiang Kai-shek from public spaces in what is seen as a bid to erase his legacy and the historical link with mainland China. Chiang ruled the island for nearly three decades until his death in 1975. He had led his Nationalist or Kuomintang troops to … Read more
Chungking – as English speakers referred to Chongqing in the early 20th century – was an unlikely capital. Deep inside China, in Szechuan (Sichuan) province, the city became the seat of Chiang Kai-shek’s government on November 20, 1937, when Chiang officially transferred China’s government from its previous long-time capital, Nanking (Nanjing). In a mobilisation unlike … Read more
