Category Archives: Taiwan

Trump’s show of force in the Middle East creates a weakness China can exploit

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Beijing can again leverage its critical minerals dominance over an increasingly busy US military, as Taiwan slides further down the White House list of priorities

As the US and Israel opened a new chapter of chaos in the Middle East, China stands to benefit from a Washington establishment that does not have the political or physical resources to focus on Asia.

Officially, China has condemned the attacks. Wang Yi, the foreign minister, called them “unacceptable” and called for a ceasefire, rhetoric that is typical of Beijing in response to Donald Trump’s increasingly erratic foreign policy moves.

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Chinese tourists shun Japan over lunar new year holiday as rift deepens

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Japanese prime minister’s refusal to back down over Taiwan comments brings more criticism and travel warnings from China

Chinese tourists are continuing to shun Japan in large numbers, with the country falling out of the top 10 destinations for those celebrating the lunar new year with a trip abroad.

Japan has had a dramatic drop in the number of Chinese visitors since the end of last year as a diplomatic row between Tokyo and Beijing over the security of Taiwan continues.

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St Vincent prime minister seeks record sixth term in tight election

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Ralph Gonsalves campaigns on strong economy in bid to retain office he has held since 2001

Voters in St Vincent and the Grenadines will go to the polls on Thursday with Ralph Gonsalves seeking a record sixth consecutive term as prime minister.

The elections are expected to be a tight contest between the ruling Unity Labour party, which has been in power since 2001, and the opposition New Democratic party. In the last election, ULP won nine of 15 seats, but the NDP won the popular vote.

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Taiwan plans extra $40bn in defence spending to counter China’s ‘intensifying’ threats

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President Lai Ching-te declared there was ‘no room for compromise on national security’ in face of escalating harassment and espionage

Beijing’s threats to Taiwan are “intensifying” and its preparations to invade are speeding up, Taiwan’s government has said while announcing a $40bn special defence budget and a swathe of measures to counter Chinese attacks.

The Taiwan president, Lai Ching-te, said there was “no room for compromise on national security”, and he was committed to boosting Taiwan’s defences in conjunction with US support.

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Taiwan plans extra $40bn in defence spending to counter China’s ‘intensifying’ threats

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President Lai Ching-te declared there was ‘no room for compromise on national security’ in face of escalating harassment and espionage

Beijing’s threats to Taiwan are “intensifying” and its preparations to invade are speeding up, Taiwan’s government has said while announcing a $40bn special defence budget and a swathe of measures to counter Chinese attacks.

The Taiwan president, Lai Ching-te, said there was “no room for compromise on national security”, and he was committed to boosting Taiwan’s defences in conjunction with US support.

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China’s Xi Jinping raises future of Taiwan in call with Donald Trump

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China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and Xi told Trump that its return was an ‘integral part of the post-war international order’

Chinese leader Xi Jinping has told Donald Trump that Beijing’s claims to Taiwan remain unchanged, in a phone call that came amid rising tensions over the self-governing island.

Xi told Trump on Monday that Taiwan’s return to China was an “integral part of the postwar international order” forged in the joint US-China fight against “fascism and militarism”, according to the Chinese foreign ministry.

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China suspends seafood imports from Japan as Taiwan row escalates

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Beijing reimposes 2023 ban, citing Japan PM’s comment that military would respond to Chinese attack on island

China has suspended imports of Japanese seafood again, as the fallout over the Japanese prime minister’s comments about Taiwan continues to escalate in one of worst bilateral disputes in years.

The ban was first reported on Wednesday by the Japanese outlets Kyodo News and NHK, and appeared to be confirmed by China’s foreign ministry, which said there was “no market for Japanese seafood in the current climate”.

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Chinese travellers cancel hundreds of thousands of trips to Japan amid rising tensions

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Chinese airlines offer free cancellations and film releases postponed after Japanese PM’s comments on Taiwan

Chinese travellers are estimated to have cancelled hundreds of thousands of tickets to fly to Japan amid reports of suspended visa processing and cultural exchanges as a diplomatic dispute over Japan’s stance on Taiwan continues.

Under pressure from business groups, Japan has sent a senior diplomat to Beijing in an attempt to calm tensions after Japan’s prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, said her country could get involved militarily if China attempted to invade Taiwan. Her comments prompted fury from China’s government, which issued warnings against Chinese travellers and students going to Japan.

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China sends coast guard to Senkaku islands amid row with Japan

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Activity around Japanese-held islands, also claimed by China, comes after PM Sanae Takaichi said Japan might respond militarily to an invasion of Taiwan

China has sent its coast guard through the waters of the Senkaku islands and military drones past outlying Japanese territory as Beijing ramps up tensions over the Japanese prime minister’s remarks on Taiwan.

On Sunday the Chinese coast guard said its ships made a “rights enforcement patrol” through the waters of the Senkaku, which are administered by Japan but also claimed by China as the Diaoyu islands.

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China sharpens its language on Taiwan as part of ‘longer-term’ strategy

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A series of statements, articles, photos and even a new national holiday indicate a shift in Beijing’s stance over the island, analysts say

In recent weeks China has released a series of statements, articles and photos, that analysts say signal an escalation in the ruling Chinese Communist Party’s approach to Taiwan.

Beijing claims Taiwan as a province and has vowed to annex it under what it terms “reunification”. China’s military is not believed to be capable of a full invasion yet, but senior officials have recently started using sharper language.

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Malaysian rapper Namewee arrested over alleged murder of Taiwanese influencer

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Namewee detained after Hsieh Yu-hsin found dead in a Kuala Lumpur hotel room on 22 October

A well-known Malaysian rapper and film-maker, Namewee, has been arrested in relation to the alleged murder of a Taiwanese woman in Kuala Lumpur.

Hsieh Yu-hsin, 31, a former nurse turned internet celebrity who posted under the name Nurse Goddess, was found dead in a hotel room on 22 October. Police this week reclassified her death as murder, after unspecified new evidence emerged.

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Taiwan now biggest importer of Russian naphtha despite being Ukraine ally

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Island imported $1.3bn of crude oil product in first half of 2025 despite joining sanctions against Moscow, report finds

Taiwan has become the world’s biggest importer of Russian naphtha, a petroleum derivative used to make chemicals needed for the semiconductor industry, despite the fact that it has joined other sanctions against Russia and considers itself an ally of Ukraine.

In the first half of 2025, Taiwan imported $1.3bn worth of Russian naphtha, and average monthly imports reached a level nearly six times higher than the 2022 average, according to a report published on Wednesday. Compared to the first half of 2024, Taiwan’s naphtha imports this year increased by 44%.

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Super Typhoon Ragasa rampages through Taiwan, Hong Kong and southern China

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Peak winds of 165mph bring 17 deaths in Taiwan, while Storm Bualoi threatens to strengthen into typhoon on its way to the Philippines

Super Typhoon Ragasa pounded Taiwan, Hong Kong and China before moving into Vietnam on Thursday night, though as a much-weakened storm.

At its peak Ragasa had mean wind speeds of 165mph as it moved to the south of Taiwan, where it brought significant heavy rain resulting in 17 deaths as a barrier lake burst.

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Taiwan convicts four former ruling party officials of spying for China

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Huang Chu-jung, previously an assistant to a New Taipei city councillor, receives longest sentence of 10 years

Four former employees of Taiwan’s ruling political party have been convicted of spying for China and handed prison sentences of up to 10 years.

The four include a former aide to Taiwan’s president, Lai Ching-te, when he was vice-president and for a time during his current presidency, and a senior staffer to Joseph Wu, then foreign minister and now the national security chief.

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Weakened Super Typhoon Ragasa heads towards Vietnam after battering China and Hong Kong

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Huge clear-up efforts start after storm leaves trail of destruction, with 25 reported dead in Taiwan and the Philippines

Huge clear-up operations were under way in southern China and Hong Kong on Thursday, after Super Typhoon Ragasa battered the region, causing widespread flooding and damaged roads.

Ragasa, the most powerful tropical cyclone so far this year, left a trail of damage across Hong Kong, which resumed international flights on Thursday but kept kindergartens and some schools closed. In the economic hub of Guangdong province in mainland China, where more than 2 million people were evacuated ahead of the super typhoon, crews used excavators to clear thousands of toppled trees and unblock roads.

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Super Typhoon Ragasa: 17 killed in Taiwan and Hong Kong battered as storm hits China

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Chinese businesses and schools shut and residents in high-rises ordered to evacuate as storm makes landfall on Guangdong coast

Fierce winds, pounding rain and high seas battered Hong Kong as Super Typhoon Ragasa headed into southern China after causing a lake to burst in Taiwan, killing at least 17 people.

Hong Kong experienced widespread damage on Wednesday, including fallen trees and flooding in many areas, with the storm surge smashing the glass doors of an upmarket hotel and flooding its lobby, according to footage circulating online.

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Taiwan accuses China of breaching international law over drilling

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Island’s government demands halt to Chinese oil and gas operations in its exclusive economic zone

Taiwan’s government has accused China of breaching international law by drilling for oil and gas inside Taiwan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and immediately demanded it halt the activity.

The statement from the office of Taiwan’s president, Lai Ching-te, came after revelations first reported by the Guardian that several Chinese oil rigs and associated vessels had been detected inside Taiwan’s EEZ, near the disputed Pratas Islands, which are under Taiwanese control.

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China drilling for oil and gas inside Taiwan’s exclusive economic zone

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Exclusive: Experts say the move could be part of Beijing’s ‘greyzone’ grab for disputed territory

China is drilling for oil and gas inside Taiwan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), a move that analysts believe is likely part of Beijing’s unilateral grab for disputed territory that could also aid a future invasion of Taiwan.

During July and August at least 12 oil and gas vessels and permanent structures were detected inside Taiwan’s EEZ – including one within 50km of the restricted-waters border of the Taiwan-controlled Pratas Islands – as well as several steel supports for fixed offshore drilling platforms, called jackets. Their presence inside Taiwan’s EEZ have not been previously reported.

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Taiwan referendum on reopening last nuclear plant fails

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Clear majority backs restarting Maanshan reactor but doesn’t reach legal threshold, as president says nuclear power may be reconsidered if it becomes safe

A referendum to push for the reopening of Taiwan’s last nuclear plant has failed to reach the legal threshold to be valid, though the president said the island could return to the technology in the future if safety standards improved.

The plebiscite on Saturday, backed by the opposition, asked whether the Maanshan power plant should be reopened if it was “confirmed” there were no safety issues. The plant was closed in May as the government shifts to renewables and liquefied natural gas.

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Trump says Xi told him China will not invade Taiwan while he is in office

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US president says Chinese counterpart told him ‘I am very patient and China is very patient’

The US president, Donald Trump, has said that his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, told him China would not invade Taiwan while Trump is in office.

Trump made the comments in an interview with Fox News on Friday, ahead of talks with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

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