Mainland officers boarded the boat for inspection and told the captain and crew to navigate towards the mainland coastal city of Jinjiang in Fujian province. The Taiwanese coastguard tried to intervene but the mainland sent seven vessels in two groups to block them. After a tense stand-off lasting about 50 minutes, the Taiwanese side ceased … Read more
Taiwan will commission two Tuo Jiang-class stealth missile corvettes this week to enhance its asymmetric warfare capabilities in response to growing threats from Beijing’s People’s Liberation Army. Dubbed “carrier killers,” the An Jiang and Wan Jiang corvettes are part of the initial batch of six relatively small yet fast and agile ships in the island’s … Read more
This is what happens in writer, producer and director S. Leo Chiang’s Island In Between – nominated for the best documentary short film Oscar at this year’s awards. But here’s the even more curious thing: moments later, Chiang’s film cuts to a video snippet from a concert he attended in Beijing’s Workers’ Stadium, in which, … Read more
The mainland Chinese and Taiwanese coastguards have been involved in a tense stand-off near Quemoy, the latest flare-up near the Taiwan-controlled island also known as Kinmen. The incident came after four coastguard ships from mainland China were patrolling in waters just 5 nautical miles from the island’s defence outpost, according to the Taiwanese coastguard. It … Read more
However, the ferry is now a popular option for Taiwan residents to travel to the mainland because only a small selection of cross-strait flights have resumed to date. According to Taipei’s Ministry of the Interior, fewer than 730,000 Taiwanese – just 37 per cent of the number in 2019 – travelled by boat from Quemoy … Read more
Beijing sees Taiwan as part of China to be reunited by force if necessary. Most countries, including the United States, Taiwan’s top weapons supplier, do not recognise the island as an independent state. However, Washington is opposed to any attempt to take Taiwan by force and is committed to arming it. Fujian is located just … Read more
The decisions are a response to large-scale war games conducted by the People’s Liberation Army last month – called Joint Sword-2024A – that simulated a blockade of Taiwan and its defence outposts of Quemoy and Matsu. There have also been multiple incidents of civilian mainland Chinese drones entering Quemoy in recent years. Han Kuang, Taiwan’s … Read more
Beijing views the self-governed island as its territory that must be brought under its control, by force if necessary. Most countries, including the United States, do not recognise Taiwan as independent, but are opposed to unilateral change of the cross-strait status quo by force. Cross-strait relations, already strained over the past eight years, deteriorated further … Read more
This time there has been no official endorsement from Beijing of the flights, but the mainland has strict rules on drone use and there has been no apparent intervention to stop the man’s activities. In recent years there have been a string of incidents in which unidentified drones have flown over restricted waters, around Quemoy, … Read more
Quemoy native Lee’s cocktails at his Vent Bar, in Jincheng township, in the west of the main island, showcase Quemoy flavours, such as the firewater Kaoliang, made with sorghum grown on the island. Powei Lee, owner of Vent Bar on Quemoy Island, Taiwan, is a champion of local produce. Photo: Reuters Lee, 31, has designed … Read more
