Taiwan says China sanctions on European arms makers will not hit weapons sourcing

April 27, 2026 9:23 AM

Taiwan says China sanctions on European arms makers will not hit weapons sourcing

Taiwan's defence minister downplayed on Monday the impact of Chinese sanctions on seven European companies over arms sales to the island, saying it was not the first time China had taken such action and it would not affect Taipei's ability to source weapons. China's Commerce Ministry banned exportson Friday of dual-use items to the seven companies over arms sales to Taiwan, placing them on its export control list, in a rare case of Europe-targeted, Taiwan-related sanctions. Taiwan, which China...

China bans two Taiwanese ministers for alleged ‘independence activities’

January 7, 2026 11:04 AM

China bans two Taiwanese ministers for alleged ‘independence activities’

Beijing has banned two Taiwanese ministers from entering China for alleged separatist activities related to "Taiwan independence", its Taiwan Affairs Office said on Wednesday. The office described Taiwanese Interior Minister Liu Shyh-fang and Education Minister Cheng Ying-yao as "die-hard Taiwan independence secessionists", and banned them as well as their relatives, from entry. The ban also extends to Hong Kong and Macau. Beijing claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and ...

Taiwan vows to defend sovereignty after China’s military drill

January 2, 2026 12:08 PM

Taiwan vows to defend sovereignty after China’s military drill

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said on Thursday the island is determined to defend its sovereignty and boost its defence in the face of China's increasing expansion, after Beijing fired rockets towards the island as part of military drills. The international community is watching to see whether the Taiwanese people possess the resolve to defend themselves, Lai said in a New Year's speech broadcast live from the presidential office in Taipei. The U.S. State Department said later on Thursday that...

Japan will pay ‘painful price’ if steps out of line over Taiwan, China says

November 27, 2025 2:04 PM

Japan will pay ‘painful price’ if steps out of line over Taiwan, China says

China's defence ministry said on Thursday that Japan will have to pay a "painful price" if it steps out of line over Taiwan, responding to Japanese plans to deploy missiles on an island some 100 km (62 miles) from Taiwan's coast. The remarks come amid the countries' worst diplomatic crisis in years, after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said this month a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could trigger a military response from Tokyo. Japan's Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said on ...

Typhoon Fung-wong brings floods to Taiwan, thousands evacuated

November 12, 2025 11:40 AM

Typhoon Fung-wong brings floods to Taiwan, thousands evacuated

Taiwan evacuated more than 8,300 people ahead of Wednesday's arrival of a much weakened Typhoon Fung-wong that brought record downpours to the mountainous east coast and unleashed floods that rose neck-high in places. Businesses and schools were shut in most southern areas of the island, with 51 people injured. Television images showed severe floods in parts of the largely rural eastern county of Yilan, with waters neck-deep as soldiers mounted rescue efforts for those stranded. More than 1,0...

Taiwan evacuates 3,000 as it awaits Typhoon Fung-wong

November 11, 2025 10:26 AM

Taiwan evacuates 3,000 as it awaits Typhoon Fung-wong

Taiwan issued a land warning on Tuesday and evacuated more than 3,000 people ahead of the arrival of Typhoon Fung-wong which, while weakening, is expected to dump large amounts of rain on the island's mountainous east coast. Fung-wong is forecast to make landfall on Taiwan's southwestern coast around the major port city of Kaohsiung on Wednesday, after powering through the Philippines as a much stronger system and killing 18 people. It is then expected to cross the bottom part of Taiwan and en...

Taiwan is not alone, vice president says after breakthrough Europe trip

November 9, 2025 11:19 AM

Taiwan is not alone, vice president says after breakthrough Europe trip

Taiwan is not alone and has more and more friends around the world and will continue to show the world its resolve, Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim said on Sunday after returning from a landmark diplomatic-breakthrough trip to Europe. While Taiwan foreign ministers on occasion visit Europe and other parts of the world that have no formal ties to Chinese-claimed Taipei, it is rare for an official as senior as the vice president to do so, given the risk of backlash from Beijing against the host nati...

Taiwan must be allowed equal participation when China hosts APEC, US says

November 6, 2025 3:58 PM

Taiwan must be allowed equal participation when China hosts APEC, US says

Taiwan must be allowed full and equal participation when China hosts APEC next year, the U.S. State Department said on Wednesday, after Taipei complained that Beijing had "added a lot of conditions" to its attendance. The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation is one of the only international bodies Chinese-claimed Taiwan is a member of, and next November's summit in Shenzhen will come as relations between Taipei and Beijing have plummeted amid a stepped-up Chinese military pressure campaign against...

Taiwan rebuffs China’s protest about Japan PM meeting at APEC

November 3, 2025 3:02 PM

Taiwan rebuffs China’s protest about Japan PM meeting at APEC

Taiwan's representative to last weekend's APEC summit rebuffed Chinese protests on Monday about his meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi while there, saying that it was "very normal" for him to meet leaders attending. China said it had lodged a strong protest with Japan about the meeting on the sidelines of the summit in South Korea, after Takaichi had posted about it on her X account and referred to Taiwan's representative Lin Hsin-i as a senior adviser to the presidential offic...

Taiwan does not want China’s ‘one country, two systems’, president says

October 31, 2025 3:23 PM

Taiwan does not want China’s ‘one country, two systems’, president says

Taiwan does not want China's "one country, two systems" and must uphold its freedom and democracy, and resolve to defend itself, President Lai Ching-te said on Friday, rejecting Beijing's latest push to get the island to come under Chinese control. China said this week it "absolutely will not" rule out using force over Taiwan, striking a much tougher tone than a series of articles in state media that pledged benign rule if the island comes over to Beijing under a system of autonomy it uses for ...