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• DEFENSE MINISTRY BUDGET UP NT$7.2 BILLION CNA 31 Aug 2005 -- The Ministry of National Defense's (MND's) annual budget is projected at NT$265.7 billion for next year, marking an increase of NT$7.2 billion from the 2005 level, according to the central government's 2006 budget bill unveiled Wednesday.
• EXECUTIVE YUAN PASSES NEW VERSION OF ARMS PROCUREMENT BILL CNA 31 Aug 2005 -- The Executive Yuan approved Wednesday a new NT$340 billion (US$10.46 billion) arms procurement draft bill submitted by the Ministry of National Defense to replace a previous one that has been continuously stonewalled by the opposition-controlled Legislative Yuan.
• TAIWAN BOUGHT US$1.1 B. WORTH OF CONVENTIONAL ARMS LAST YEAR CNA 31 Aug 2005 -- Taiwan imported US$1.1 billion-worth of conventional arms in 2004, ranking seventh among the developing nations, while China imported US$2.7 billion-worth, or third in value, according to a newly released United States Congress report.
• ARMS PURCHASE TO BE STRATEGIC DETERRENT: VICE DEFENSE MINISTER CNA 31 Aug 2005 -- The proposed purchase of Patriot missiles, submarines and anti-submarine aircraft from the United States will serve as a deterrent against possible Chinese military adventurism against Taiwan, Vice Minister of National Defense Tsai Ming-hsien said Wednesday.
• DEFENSE BUDGET CHANGES 'A GRUELING DECISION': DEFENSE MINISTER LEE CNA 30 Aug 2005 -- Minister of National Lee Jye said Tuesday it has been a "grueling" experience for him to decide to use the regular budget to purchase badly needed Patriot III anti-missile batteries from the United States.
• WAR IN IRAQ GRAVELY AFFECTS TAIWAN-FRANCE TIES: OUTGOING ENVOY CNA 27 Aug 2005 -- The war in Iraq has had a grave direct impact on relations between Taiwan and France, the outgoing Republic of China representative to France said Saturday.
• MATSU RESIDENTS CONCERNED ABOUT PLANNED TROOP REDUCTION CNA 26 Aug 2005 -- Residents of Matsu are concerned about a Ministry of National Defense (MND) plan to cut the number of troops stationed on the outlying island to less than 5,000 by 2008, local government sources said Friday.
• CHINESE-RUSSIAN DRILL AIMED AT POSSIBLE CROSS-STRAIT WAR: MAC CNA 26 Aug 2005 -- A just-concluded Chinese-Russian joint military exercise was apparently aimed at a possible conflict across the Taiwan Strait, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Chairman Joseph Wu said Friday.
• GOVERNMENT 'WILL NOT CREATE TENSION' WITH CHINA: PREMIER CNA 25 Aug 2005 -- Premier Frank Hsieh claimed Thursday that the government "will not create tension" while seeking rapprochement with China, a move he said will create a win-win situation for both Taiwan and China.
• TAIWAN MUST DECIDE ON ARMS PURCHASE ON ITS OWN: U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY CNA 24 Aug 2005 -- U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Tuesday that its up to Taiwan to decide whether to purchase the arms offered by the United States, pointing out that sovereign countries have to make decisions for themselves.
• CHINESE-RUSSIAN MILITARY EXERCISE POSES NO THREAT TO TAIWAN: RUMSFELD CNA 24 Aug 2005 -- U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Tuesday that he neither finds the current Chinese-Russian joint military exercise notable nor sees it as a threat to Taiwan or to anyone else.
• ARMS PACKAGE SHOULD ENTER DISCUSSION STAGE: LEGISLATIVE SPEAKER CNA 24 Aug 2005 -- Legislative Yuan President Wang Jin-pyng said Wednesday he thinks that now is the time for lawmakers to start screening a long-stalled U.S. weapons procurement package.
• PRESIDENT HOPES TO DISCUSS ARMS PROCUREMENT WITH KMT CHAIRMAN CNA 23 Aug 2005 -- President Chen Shui-bian said Tuesday he looks forward to rational and pragmatic discussion with new opposition Kuomintang Chairman Ma Ying-jeou on the long-stalled arms procurement package and China's ever mounting military threat.
• ARMS PROCUREMENT ISSUE SHOULD BE DEALT WITH IN LEGISLATURE: KMT HEAD CNA 23 Aug 2005 -- The best forum for discussions on the government-proposed arms procurement package is the Legislative Yuan, new opposition Kuomintang (KMT) Chairman Ma Ying-yeou said Tuesday.
• KMT WILLING TO DISCUSS FUNDING CHANGE FOR U.S. ARMS PURCHASE CNA 23 Aug 2005 -- The Ministry of National Defense's plan to include part of the purchase of U.S. arms in its regular budget has met with approval by the opposition Kuomintang's (KMT) legislative caucus, with a KMT legislator saying Tuesday that his party is now willing to look at the plan and discuss it within the party's legislative caucus.
• ARMS PROCUREMENT AIMS TO BEEF UP DEFENSE, NOT ARMS RACE: PRESIDENT CNA 23 Aug 2005 -- President Chen Shui-bian said Tuesday his administration's arms procurement plan is not meant as an arms race with China, but is primarily for beefing up Taiwan's defense capabilities in the face of China's ever growing military threat.
• DPP WANTS NEW KMT HEAD TO SHOW HIS HAND ON ARMS PURCHASE CNA 23 Aug 2005 -- A ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislator said Tuesday that the opposition Kuomintang Chairman Ma Ying-jeou should express his attitude toward the stalled arms procurement package from the United States.
• DEFENSE MINISTRY TO JOIN FIGHT AGAINST CHINA'S `CHARM OFFENSIVE' CNA 23 Aug 2005 -- The Ministry of National Defense (MND) will join the government's fight against what it claims is China's "charm offensive" targeting Taiwan's farmers by opening its market to Taiwan fruit, according to Gen. Hu Cheng-pu, chief of the department of political warfare under the MND.
• U.S. WILL NOT LET KMT CHIEF HEDGE ON ARMS PROCUREMENT: LAWMAKER CNA 23 Aug 2005 -- The U.S. will not let newly inaugurated opposition Kuomintang (KMT) Chairman Ma Ying-jeou hedge on the issue of the government's controversial arms purchase from America, Hsiao Bi-khim a lawmaker of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) , speculated Tuesday.
• COAST GUARD LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN AGAINST INTRUDING CHINESE SHIPS CNA 20 Aug 2005 -- The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) launched a weeklong "clean sweep" campaign Saturday against Chinese fishing boats and ocean survey ships intruding into waters near Taiwan's outlying islands of Kinmen, Matsu and Penghu.
• RUSSIA-CHINA MILITARY EXERCISE A PRETEXT TO SUPPRESS TAIWAN: ENVOY CNA 20 Aug 2005 -- Beijing seems to be attempting to use the current Russia-China joint military exercise as a pretext to suppress Taiwan, although it describes the war game as "anti-terrorist and peace-keeping" maneuvers, the Republic of China's top envoy to Russia said Friday.
• CHINA IS NOT RISING PEACEFULLY: ROC FOREIGN MINISTER CNA 20 Aug 2005 -- China is not "rising peacefully" as it claims, which can be evidenced by its increasing annual military budget, ROC Minister of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) Tan Sun Chen said Saturday.
• DPP WANTS PEOPLE TO BACK GOV'T PROPOSAL TO BUY U.S. WEAPONRY CNA 20 Aug 2005 -- Several ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) officials and lawmakers attended an activity held in Taipei Saturday, soliciting more support from the public for the government's proposal to buy arms from the United States.
• MOFA CONCERNED ABOUT CHINA-RUSSIA JOINT MILITARY EXERCISES CNA 18 Aug 2005 -- The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) voiced a high degree of concern Thursday over an ongoing China-Russia joint military exercise and urged China to withdraw its 700-odd missiles aimed at Taiwan.
• ARMED FORCES STAGE 'LIEN HSING' JOINT EXERCISE ON NORTHWEST COAST CNA 17 Aug 2005 -- A joint military exercise was conducted in a village of Linkou on Taiwan's northwestern coast Wednesday to test the Navy's amphibious landing capabilities and the Army's counter-strike and counter-invasion abilities, the Naval Fleet Command reported.
• ARMS PACKAGE TO BE PARTIALLY FINANCED BY REGULAR MILITARY BUDGET CNA 17 Aug 2005 -- The controversial U.S. arms procurement package can be partly funded from the government's regular budget instead of from appropriations from a special budget, the Cabinet decided Wednesday.
• TAIWAN-CHINA TALKS ON CHARTER LINKS LIKELY: MAC CNA 17 Aug 2005 -- Taiwan-China talks on cross-Taiwan Strait direct charter links seems likely to happen, judging from the current developments, and the government will try its best to safeguard national interests by making a detailed proposal to the Chinese side, a ranking Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) official said Wednesday.
• MA CONCERNED ABOUT IMPACT OF ARMS DEAL ON CROSS-STRAIT SITUATION CNA 16 Aug 2005 -- A legislator said Tuesday that Kuomintang (KMT) Chairman-elect Ma Ying-jeou is particularly concerned about the possible impact of the arms procurement package on the cross-Taiwan Strait situation.
• MND TO KEEP AN EYE ON UPCOMING CHINA-RUSSIA WAR GAMES CNA 16 Aug 2005 -- The Ministry of National Defense (MND) will closely monitor China-Russia war games scheduled to start Thursday, military spokesman Liu Chih-chien said Tuesday.
• TWO KIDD-CLASS DESTROYERS EXPECTED TO JOIN NAVY BY YEAR'S END CNA 16 Aug 2005 -- Two of four Kidd-class destroyers purchased from the United States are expected to be delivered to Taiwan by the end of the year, an official of Navy General Headquarters said Tuesday.
• WAN-AN AIR-RAID DRILL TO BE HELD IN CENTRAL TAIWAN WEDNESDAY CNA 16 Aug 2005 -- An air-raid drill will be held in central Taiwan Wednesday as part of the annual Wan-An series of civil defense exercises, the, Ministry of National Defense announced Tuesday.
• KMT TO SUPPORT ARMS PURCHASE IF GOVERNMENT MAKES THE BUDGET CLEAR CNA 16 Aug 2005 -- Opposition Kuomintang (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan said Tuesday that the KMT will support an adequate arsenal for Taiwan as long as the government makes the arms procurement budget clearer.
• PRESIDENT DESCRIBES CHINA'S MILITARY RISE AS THREAT CNA 15 Aug 2005 -- Present Chen Shui-bian warned that China's military expansion and modernization is not only a threat against Taiwan, but also the entire international community.
• TAIWAN PEOPLE WANT TO BE THEIR OWN MASTERS: PRESIDENT CNA 13 Aug 2005 -- President Chen Shui-bian on Saturday expounded on the issues of the nation's identity, cross-strait policy and the nation's future, stressing that the aspiration of the Taiwanese people to be their own masters is unstoppable.
• U.S., JAPAN SURE TO DEFEND TAIWAN: SECURITY OFFICIAL CNA 13 Aug 2005 -- The United States and Japan are sure to come to Taiwan's defense if the island is attacked by China, because Taiwan's security is their common objective, a security official said Saturday in Chiayi, southern Taiwan.
• U.N. URGED TO TAKE STEPS TO AVERT CROSS-STRAIT CONFLICT CNA 12 Aug 2005 -- More than 10 Republic of China diplomatic allies filed a request with U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan Thursday urging him to appoint either an envoy or a task force to look into the Taiwan Strait situation.
• SECRET CRUISE MISSILE DEPLOYMENT TV REPORT 'SHEER FABRICATION': MND CNA 12 Aug 2005 -- The Ministry of National Defense (MND) spokesman on Friday referred as a "sheer fabrication" to a media report claiming that locally-built cruise missiles have secretly begun to be deployed on the island.
• BALANCED CROSS-STRAIT TIES KEY TO SHAPING OF NEW PACIFIC ORDER: CHEN CNA 11 Aug 2005 -- President Chen Shui-bian said Thursday that a balanced relationship between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait is the key to the formation of a "new peaceful Pacific order."
• NO LINKS BETWEEN ARMS DEAL AND CHEN'S TRANSIT STOP: U.S. OFFICIAL CNA 11 Aug 2005 -- The U.S. government would never link the issue of which cities Taiwan's president can transit through in the United States to movement on the island's planned arms procurement from the United States, a State Department official said Wednesday.
• TAIWAN HAS NEVER BEEN PART OF SIX-PARTY TALKS OVER NORTH KOREA: US CNA 11 Aug 2005 -- The United States has never thought of trading off Taiwan in dealing with the issue of North Korea's nuclear program, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher R. Hill said Wednesday.
• FOUNDATION ADMITS ALLEGED SPY ATTENDED ITS SEMINARS CNA 10 Aug 2005 -- A reporter with the Singapore-based Straits Times who has been in custody in China and is charged with spying for Taiwan attended seminars in Taiwan at the Foundation on International and Cross-strait Studies, the foundation admitted Wednesday.
• TAIWAN TO MAKE TWO CASES FOR U.N. BID THIS YEAR: FOREIGN MINISTER CNA 09 Aug 2005 -- The Republic of China government will make two cases for its U.N. participation this year and will bring to the world's attention China's ever-growing threat to Taiwan, Minister of Foreign Affairs Tan Sun Chen said Tuesday.
• KMT: REFERENDUM VETOED ANTI-MISSILE PURCHASE PLAN CNA 09 Aug 2005 -- The outcome of the referendum on Taiwan's self defense held at the same time as last year's presidential election vetoed the idea of Taiwan purchasing anti-missile weaponry, opposition Kuomintang (KMT) spokesman Chang Jung-kun said Tuesday.
• PRO-INDEPENDENCE GROUP TO MARCH FOR ARMS PROCUREMENT PACKAGE CNA 09 Aug 2005 -- A pro-independence group announced Tuesday it will organize a march in Taipei Sept. 25 to push the opposition-controlled Legislative Yuan to pass a long-stalled arms procurement package as early as possible to meet the nation's defense needs.
• MINISTER PUBLISHES ARTICLE PROMOTING TAIWAN'S U.N. BID CNA 09 Aug 2005 -- Minister of Foreign Affairs Tan Sun Chen said Tuesday he has contributed an article to the Harvard International Review to promote Taiwan's bid to join the United Nations.
• LEGISLATIVE SPEAKER SUPPORTS RATIONAL DEBATE ON ARMS PACKAGE CNA 08 Aug 2005 -- Legislative Yuan Speaker Wang Jin-pyng said in Los Angeles Sunday that he supports in-depth discussions on a long-stalled arms procurement package to address Taiwan's defense needs and China's mounting military threat.
• US Concerned by Charges Against Hong Kong Journalist VOA 08 Aug 2005 -- The United States Monday expressed concern about spy charges filed by China against a prominent Hong Kong journalist. The journalist, for the Straits Times newspaper of Singapore, is accused of spying for Taiwan.
• NEW KMT CHAIRMAN URGED TO PUSH FOR QUICK PASSAGE OF ARMS PACKAGE CNA 06 Aug 2005 -- The Taiwan Caucus in the U.S. House of Representatives recently sent a letter to opposition Kuomintang (KMT) Chairman-elect Ma Ying-jeou, urging him to work for quick passage of a special arms procurement package in the Legislative Yuan.
• MND YET TO DECIDE ON WHICH ARMS TO BE LISTED UNDER ANNUAL BUDGET CNA 06 Aug 2005 -- The Ministry of National Defense (MND) said Saturday that it has yet to decide on which items of an arms procurement package to place in its regular annual budget as it has yet to receive directives from the Presidential Office and the Executive Yuan.
• CHEN VOWS TO PROTECT TAIWAN'S SOVEREIGNTY IN ENGAGEMENTS WITH CHINA CNA 06 Aug 2005 -- President Chen Shui-bian reiterated Saturday that ensuring Taiwan's survival and sovereign status is his administration's paramount principle for engagements across the Taiwan Strait.
• NO PEACE TREATY, NO FLY-OVER RIGHT FOR CHINESE PLANES: PREMIER HSIEH CNA 04 Aug 2005 -- Taiwan will not allow Chinese commercial aircraft to fly over its airspace until a peace treaty has been signed by the two sides, Premier Frank Hsieh said Thursday.
• JOINT NAVY-AIR FORCE EXERCISE LAUNCHED OFF KAOHSIUNG CNA 03 Aug 2005 -- Anti-blockade, air raid and combined operations for intercepting enemy attacks will be featured in a joint navy-air force exercise, part of the annual Han Kuang No. 21 exercises, that was launched off Tsoying in southern Kaohsiung City Tuesday.
• JAPAN, TAIWAN AGREE IN ASSESSMENT OF CHINA'S MILITARY STRENGTH CNA 02 Aug 2005 -- Japan's prediction that China will begin to prevail against Taiwan militarily from 2006 unless Taiwan engages in an aggressive military build-up is in full agreement with a forecast by the Ministry of National Defense (MND) , a ministry official said Tuesday.
• NAVAL, AIRBORNE FORCES TO CONDUCT COMBINED DRILL CNA 02 Aug 2005 -- Naval and airborne forces will conduct a combined live-fire training drill in southern Taiwan waters Wednesday as part of the ongoing Hankuang 21 military exercises
• 'FOUR STAGES OF ROC' ENDANGERS CROSS-STRAIT STABILITY: KMT CNA 02 Aug 2005 -- An opposition Kuomintang (KMT) spokesman criticized Tuesday President Chen Shui-bian's new theory of "four stages of the Republic of China" as a factor that will endanger cross-Taiwan Strait stability.
• ROC SHOULD PRESERVE ITS "SECRET WEAPON" WHILE FACING CHINA'S THREAT CNA 02 Aug 2005 -- Taiwan should continue to treat the United States as its "secret weapon" as it faces military threats from China, a retired U.S. general who was once stationed in Beijing said Monday.
• MOFA CLOSELY MONITORS CHINA'S NEW DIPLOMATIC OFFENSIVE AGAINST TAIWAN CNA 02 Aug 2005 -- China has launched a new diplomatic offensive against Taiwan by using its growing economic clout to sway the ROC's diplomatic allies, Ministry of Foreign Affairs