Kinmen Islands: From Front-Line Battlefield to Potential Bridge of Peace?

Taiwan’s Kinmen Islands are known for their sorghum wine, wind lion gods, and knives made from old mortar shells. And because they are just a few kilometers from China’s southeastern coast, they often are caught in the middle of tensions between Taipei and Beijing. VOA’s Elizabeth Lee has more on the unique history of Kinmen and the perspectives of the people who live there. Voice of America

Kinmen: Is War History?

KINMEN, TAIWAN —  From the Kinmen Islands, a Taiwanese outpost just three kilometers at its closest point from China, residents can stand on a beach and look across at the growing forest of skyscrapers in the Chinese city of Xiamen. But far from feeling threatened by their proximity to the country that vows to “reunify” with Taiwan — by force if necessary — most Kinmen residents say they feel safer on China’s doorstep than they would on the main island of Taiwan. That is not to say that Beijing has…

Taiwan’s deputy foreign minister heads to Tuvalu to cement ties with Pacific ally

Taiwan’s deputy foreign minister has embarked on a visit to diplomatic ally Tuvalu, officials said, after the Pacific island nation’s new government affirmed its “special” relationship with Taipei. Tien Chung-kwang left for the visit on Monday as a special envoy for president Tsai Ing-wen to congratulate and show support for Tuvalu’s new government, said foreign ministry official Eric Chen. Tien will attend celebrations for the new government and meet top officials including new prime minister Feleti Teo to discuss bilateral cooperation before returning on Saturday, Chen said on Tuesday. The…

‘Facing up to history’: relatives of Taiwan’s 2-28 massacre victims demand official reckoning

Lin Li-cai was only two years old when her father was murdered. She knew almost nothing about his death until she was an adult. “There used to be a picture of my father hanging in the living room, but I didn’t even know who it was,” says Lin, now 80. She has no memory of the events and throughout her childhood his death was mentioned just twice. The first was when her uncle warned her: “Don’t talk about what happened to your father, otherwise the police will come get you.”…

Congress ‘gradually destroying’ US relations with Pacific ally, Marshall Islands president warns

Hilda Heine, the president of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, has warned relations with the US are “gradually being destroyed by party politics” as Congress delays approval of crucial funding for the Pacific nation. US lawmakers have not yet passed funding packages agreed in 2023 with the Marshall Islands, Palau and the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), in a move some argue is opening the door to China to build its influence in the Pacific region. “Members of the Congress have to understand that the funds that the US…

Tuvalu names Feleti Teo prime minister after pro-Taiwan leader Kausea Natano ousted

Lawmakers in Tuvalu have selected Feleti Teo as the Pacific island nation’s new prime minister, weeks after an election that put ties with Taiwan in focus. Former attorney general Teo secured the support of lawmakers who were elected last month, government secretary Tufoua Panapa told AFP on Monday. There has been speculation that Tuvalu, one of just 12 states that still formally recognise Taiwan, could consider establishing relations with Beijing. Pacific observers will be looking to see whether Teo calls for a policy rethink. Teo’s elevation to prime minister comes…

Culture, democracy and clout: why three Pacific countries are sticking with Taiwan

As a king tide swept through Tuvalu this month, flooding homes and disrupting local sea routes, changes in political currents were also buffeting the country. The wild weather delayed a key meeting between newly elected members of parliament to determine the successor to Tuvalu’s prime minister Kausea Natano, who lost his seat in January’s elections. The new prime minister will need to tackle pressing domestic issues and also wider regional concerns, namely its role in the geopolitical tussle for influence in the Pacific. Natano had been staunch in his government’s…

Delegation Led by Mike Gallagher Says U.S. Support for Taiwan Is Firm

Visiting U.S. lawmakers sought to assure Taiwan on Thursday that the United States would stand by it in the face of pressure from China, though a bill that includes support for the island has stalled in Congress, and divisions over aid for Ukraine have fanned wider questions about Washington’s commitment to its partners. “Today we’ve come as Democrats and Republicans to show bipartisan support for this partnership,” Representative Mike Gallagher, the Wisconsin Republican who is leading the congressional delegation to Taiwan, told President Tsai Ing-wen in Taipei, the capital. Journalists…

Taiwan chases Chinese coast guard boat away from frontline islands amid heightened tensions

Taiwan on Tuesday drove away a Chinese coast guard boat that entered waters near its sensitive frontline islands, one day after China’s coast guard boarded a Taiwanese tourist boat amid an escalating dispute sparked by a fatal capsize last week. A Chinese coast guard boat, numbered 8029, entered Taiwan’s waters near Kinmen on Tuesday morning, Taiwan’s coast guard said, adding that it dispatched a boat and used radio and broadcast to drive away its Chinese counterpart, which left the area an hour later. Taiwan’s coast guard said it will continue…