Taiwan’s military said recently that it will start recruiting twice the annual number of special reservists next year, as part of a reform project to create a more reliable backup force for the country’s regular troops, amid China’s growing military threats. focustaiwan.tw
Category: Taiwan
Taiwan ranks No. 1 worldwide for IQ
On May 16, Finnish enterprise Wiqtcom Inc. released the results of its Worldwide IQ test for 2022. Coming in first place out of over 100 countries was Taiwan, with an average IQ of 116.07. taiwannews.com.tw
Top Ten List according to worldwide-iq-test.com
| # | Country | Average IQ | Standard Deviation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Taiwan | 116.07 | 14.26 |
| 2. | Japan | 112.69 | 12.16 |
| 3. | Hungary | 111.42 | 15.03 |
| 4. | South Korea | 111.36 | 14.09 |
| 5. | Iran | 111.33 | 14.13 |
| 6. | Hong Kong | 111.01 | 12.74 |
| 7. | Serbia | 110.09 | 16.69 |
| 8. | Italy | 110.87 | 15.93 |
| 9. | Vietnam | 109.37 | 12.49 |
| 10. | Finland | 109.02 | 18.22 |
Keeping it in the family: Wayne Chiang to run for Taipei mayor
The great grandson of the late Kuomintang leader Chiang Kai-shek has been selected as the party’s candidate to become the next mayor of Taipei.
But Wayne Chiang Wan-an, a KMT legislator in Taiwan’s parliament, still faces a long battle and will need to beat some formidable foes. South China Morning Post
Taiwan is worried about the security of its chip industry
Good thing then that Taiwan has huguo shenshan, or the “magic mountain that protects the nation”. The mountain is not a sophisticated defensive fortification, nor a treaty with a big power. It is instead what Taiwanese call their $147bn semiconductor industry, equivalent to 15% of gdp. It accounts for nearly 40% of its exports and is a pillar of the island’s economy. It is also a guarantor of its security. The Economist
Covid Surge Leaves Taiwan’s Insurers Struggling to Pay Out
Taiwan’s worst Covid outbreak has left the island’s insurers bracing for more than $1 billion in claims that the financial regulator is urging them to honor Bloomberg
Is Taiwan Next?
US President Joe Biden said during his recent visit to Asia that America will defend Taiwan militarily in the event of a Chinese invasion. Although White House officials were quick to state that US policy toward the island had not changed, some think that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and China’s increasing regional assertiveness necessitate a tougher approach. Project-Syndicate.org
China’s military sorties near Taiwan changing status quo
Sending military planes to conduct exercises near Taiwan is “an act of changing the status quo” and an “inappropriate use of force,” Su said when asked to comment on the speech on the U.S.’ China policy by Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday. focustaiwan.tw
Possible talks between U.S. & Taiwan ‘in a few weeks’
Taiwan and the United States could begin talks to deepen trade and economic ties “in a few weeks,” two senior Taiwanese government officials told CNN on Friday.
The new discussions will “explore concrete ways to deepen the US-Taiwan trade and investment relationship,” the officials said, with the focus on institutionalizing cooperation in supply chain resilience, labor, environment and sustainable development. CNN
Taiwan lowers GDP forecast for 2022, raises inflation expectations
Taiwan lowered its GDP growth forecast for this year by 0.51 percentage points to 3.91% versus its previous forecast.
According to an official statement on Friday from the country’s budget directorate, inflation is expected to reach 2.67% on average this year, increasing by 0.74 percentage points. aa.com.tr
No, Biden Hasn’t Abandoned Strategic Ambiguity on Taiwan
… the notion that the Biden administration has undercut strategic ambiguity may be overstated. Instead, the president and his team are continuing the Trump administration’s process of upgrading strategic ambiguity and the One-China framework to more pragmatically protect Taiwan’s democracy and security as Chinese president Xi Jinping heightens Chinese nationalism and embraces a more offensive approach. Nationalinterest.org