Explore

Taiwan’s incoming president Lai Ching-te has made Time Magazine’s list of the “100 Most Influential People of 2024”, which the island hailed Thursday as a recognition of its “democratic achievements”. Vice President Lai, who won the January presidential election to succeed Tsai Ing-wen, will take office on May 20 at a time of growing tensions […]

A student protester must be able to chant slogans with an air of certainty. A pragmatic legislator has to navigate the ambiguities of politics. Lin Fei-fan has managed to do both. Lin, a former leader of Taiwan’s Sunflower Movement, has been deputy-secretary general of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) since 2019. The DPP in January […]

Taiwan’s foreign minister lashed out at Bolivia Saturday for expressing solidarity with China following an earthquake that struck the island Beijing views as its own. At least 10 people were killed and more than 1,100 injured by the magnitude 7.2 quake that struck Taiwan Wednesday, with strict building codes and widespread disaster readiness credited with […]

By Yan Zhao with Amber Wang Taiwan rescuers worked Thursday to reach scores of people trapped in highway tunnels as engineers began a massive clear-up operation a day after the island’s biggest earthquake in a quarter of a century. Nine people were killed and more than 1,000 injured in Wednesday’s magnitude-7.4 quake, but strict building regulations and widespread […]

At least one person was feared dead and nearly 60 injured Wednesday by a powerful earthquake in Taiwan that damaged dozens of buildings and prompted tsunami warnings that extended to Japan and the Philippines before being lifted. Officials said the quake and series of strong aftershocks was the strongest to shake the island in decades, […]

82 per cent of Hong Kong adults say that a multi-party democracy would be a good way of governing the city, a Pew survey of five East Asian territories and countries has found. “More than eight-in-ten adults in Hong Kong and Taiwan say democracy is a good way to govern… Yet some people in both […]

By Amber Wang with Dene-Hern Chen in Hong Kong Taipei’s defence ministry announced Friday the highest single-day number of Chinese military aircraft around the self-ruled island this year, which analysts attributed as a reaction to Taiwan’s political outreach to Europe in recent days. Beijing claims democratic Taiwan as part of its territory and has never […]

Taiwan’s defence ministry said Thursday that 32 Chinese military aircraft were detected around the island in a 24-hour window — the second-highest number this year. In the 24 hours leading up to 6:00 am Thursday (2200 GMT Wednesday), the Ministry of National Defence also detected five naval ships operating around Taiwan, it said. Twenty of […]

Executing concrete-smashing stunts and somersaults, Taiwan’s marines performed on Saturday at a northern port where the public was given a rare chance to board three warships before the navy embarks on a “friendship” tour in the Pacific. The self-ruled island currently has diplomatic relations with just 12 countries worldwide, three of them in the Pacific […]

Once home to the military families, Treasure Hill Artist Village has become one of Taipei’s most unique landmarks. A hilltop assemblage of 1960s and 70s shanties, many of them illegally erected, the enclave is now an incubator for Taiwan and international art, hosting residencies and housing studios. It is not just for artists, though. The […]

Taiwan said it received assurances from Tuvalu’s new prime minister Monday that ties were “everlasting”, scotching rumours that the Pacific island nation was poised to flip alliances to Beijing. Former attorney general Feleti Teo was named premier in a ceremony on Monday, a month after an election that put the Pacific Island nation’s recognition of […]

In May 2023, signs indicating the location of the nearest air defence shelter popped up across Taiwan. These red arrows, many pointing to a basement or a building’s parking lot, are designed to let people know where to seek refuge in case of an air raid.  Taiwan has more than 90,000 shelters, but critics say […]

The chairman of the US House of Representatives committee on China accused Beijing of “bullying” Taiwan, as he arrived on the self-ruled island Thursday for talks with its leaders. Mike Gallagher heads a five-member delegation set to meet with the island’s top leadership, including President Tsai Ing-wen and Vice President Lai Ching-te, who won last […]

Taiwan called on Beijing to “be rational” on Tuesday following a deadly incident involving a Chinese boat and the Taiwanese coast guard, with the island’s premier insisting it would protect its waters. China claims self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory, and relations between the two have soured in recent years. Last week two Chinese […]

Taiwan called on Beijing Thursday to restrain its citizens from illegal fishing in the waters around the self-ruled island, defending its coast guard over the pursuit of a boat that led to the deaths of two Chinese nationals. The boat was carrying four people when it capsized near the Kinmen islands — a territory administered […]

These days, many Hongkongers speak of migration; perhaps they are planning a move, or know people who have already left. In 2023, Chief Executive Lee Ka-chiu said that the city had lost 200,000 from its workforce in recent years, a shortage he said he hoped to address by attracting foreign talent and importing labour. When […]

Eight Chinese balloons were detected around Taiwan for the second straight day, with five flying directly over the island, Taipei’s defence ministry said Sunday. The ministry said the balloons were spotted on Saturday, the first day of the Lunar New Year holiday, at an altitude of 12,000 to 35,000 feet. Five of the balloons flew […]

There is a scene in S. Leo Chiang’s Oscar-nominated documentary short Island in Between where two men discuss a fierce battle. One mentions a memorial for fallen soldiers on the opposite side of the strait that separates them from China. The other seems surprised something like that would exist. “Duh! They fought us. Of course […]

Taiwan ordered on Wednesday travel agencies to stop organising group tours to China following Beijing’s adjustment of an aviation route that drew ire on the self-ruled island. Local authorities banned tourist groups from visiting China in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, with the restrictions set to be lifted after the Lunar New Year holiday […]

By Amber Wang After overcoming anti-LGBTQ discrimination, scepticism about her age and criticism of her limited political experience, 31-year-old Huang Jie says her election to Taiwan’s parliament as the island’s first openly gay MP represents progress. Democratic Taiwan is one of the most liberal societies in Asia and hailed as a bastion for LGBTQ rights […]

By Tingwei Lin Taiwan’s freshly elected lawmakers will meet from Thursday, with a new party enjoying an outsized influence over legislation after breaking through the self-ruled island’s long-entrenched two-party system. Taiwan’s political landscape has been dominated for decades by two parties, the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the opposition Kuomintang (KMT), both defined by […]

Kaohsiung’s populist former mayor, Han Kuo-yu, has been elected as Taiwan’s legislative speaker. The 66-year-old opposition Kuomintang (KMT) nominee won 54 votes, whilst the outgoing speaker, You Si-kun of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) received 51 votes on Thursday. The Taiwan People’s Party – the island’s third-largest – did not partake in the vote. […]

Some stand tall whilst others are seated, one is on horseback as others wave or salute. In all, more than 200 unwanted statues sit in a nondescript park outside Taoyuan City in Taiwan – ranging from life-size to 15-feet tall, in red, brown, blue and white. All of them pay homage to one man: the […]

China and Nauru formally re-established diplomatic relations Wednesday, after the tiny South Pacific nation cut ties with Taiwan. The foreign ministers of the two countries held a signing ceremony in Beijing, an AFP journalist saw. In a post-election blow to Taiwan, Nauru unexpectedly announced last Monday that it would no longer recognize Taiwan “as a […]