Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

Source: Republic of China Taiwan

MOFA response to joint statement by leaders of Japan and Finland emphasizing importance of Taiwan Strait peace and stability

Date：2025-06-12
Data Source：Department of East Asian and Pacific Affairs

June 12, 2025Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Finnish President Alexander Stubb met in Tokyo on June 11. In a joint statement, they said that Japan and Finland strongly opposed any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the South and East China Seas by force or coercion, emphasized the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait as an indispensable element in the security and prosperity of the international community, and encouraged the peaceful resolution of cross-strait issues.This is the first time that the leaders of Japan and Finland have expressed their high concern for Taiwan Strait peace in a joint statement. Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung welcomes this concrete action by Japan and Finland to support peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and appreciates Japan and other like-minded nations continuing to call the international community’s attention to the Taiwan Strait situation during international gatherings, including the US-Japan leaders’ summit in February, the meeting between Prime Minister Ishiba and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in April, and Japan’s summit meetings with Latvia and Guatemala in May. This shows the high degree of consensus and common interest that the international community has for maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.The Ministry of Foreign Affairs hopes that democracies around the world will continue to take preventative action and countermeasures to stop the expansion of authoritarianism from posing a threat to regional peace and stability and challenging the rules-based global democratic order. Taiwan will uphold the ideals of integrated diplomacy as it continues to deepen cooperation with friends and allies, jointly advancing peace, stability, and prosperity throughout the Indo-Pacific region and around the globe.

Source: Republic of China Taiwan

MOFA extends condolences following plane accident in India

Date：2025-06-12
Data Source：Department of East Asian and Pacific Affairs

June 12, 2025No. 205On June 12, Air India flight 171 crashed shortly after taking off from the airport in Ahmedabad in western India. On behalf of the people and government of Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) promptly conveyed condolences to the India-Taipei Association and instructed the Taipei Economic and Cultural Center (TECC) in India to also express sympathies to India’s Ministry of External Affairs. In addition, TECC in India and TECC in Mumbai, after contacting relevant Indian agencies, have so far determined that no Taiwanese nationals were on the accident flight. MOFA and its missions in India will continue to closely follow developments, maintain contact with Indian agencies, and provide necessary assistance in a timely manner.Taiwanese nationals visiting India who require emergency assistance may call the hotlines of TECC in India (+91-9810642658), TECC in Mumbai (+91-8850842243), or TECC in Chennai (+91-9600099511). They may also ask friends or family in Taiwan to call the MOFA emergency hotline (0800-085-095). (E)

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

A delegation of 10 overseas government officials today completed their three-day visit to Hong Kong, having met senior officials of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and toured the city’s major cultural and innovation and technology facilities to deepen their understanding of the city’s advantages and development opportunities.

The visit was arranged by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which invited officials from 10 countries across Africa and Asia. These countries comprise Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Mauritania, Morocco, Nepal, Pakistan, Qatar, Sri Lanka and Tunisia.

During the trip, the delegation met Acting Financial Secretary Michael Wong, Deputy Chief Secretary Cheuk Wing-hing and Deputy Secretary for Justice Cheung Kwok-kwan to obtain a better understanding of Hong Kong’s distinctive advantage of enjoying the strong support of the motherland while being closely connected to the world under the “one country, two systems” principle.

The delegation learnt of Hong Kong’s important roles as a “super connector” and a “super value-adder”, serving as a bridge between the Mainland and the rest of the world.

They also met Secretary for Financial Services & the Treasury Christopher Hui, Under Secretary for Commerce & Economic Development Bernard Chan and Under Secretary for Innovation, Technology & Industry Lillian Cheong as well as representatives of a number of relevant institutions.

Additionally, they toured the Science Park and West Kowloon Cultural District to find out about the city’s latest developments and opportunities in finance, trade, innovation and technology, and arts and culture.

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

The Buildings Department, in its capacity as the Building Authority, will study the written judgment to be handed down by the Court of First Instance together with its legal team, and prepare for the appeal hearing with full effort concerning the granting of an interim stay of execution of the authority’s decision to remove Aggressive Construction Co. Ltd (ACCL) from the register of general building contractors.

The Development Bureau said the authority refused the registration renewal application of ACCL on May 22 and decided to remove its name from the register of general building contractors on June 20.

The company appealed against the decision and applied for a stay of execution of the decision, and the Court of First Instance of the High Court today granted a temporary stay of execution of the decision. The hearing of the appeal and application for stay of execution is tentatively scheduled for August 26 and 27.

The bureau noted that if there are still construction activities on the project sites undertaken by ACCL during the period pending further hearings, the project owners concerned will act in accordance with the contracts and continue to monitor the construction sites and the performance of the contractor.

If the contractor’s performance fails to meet the contractual requirements, the project owners will handle the matter in accordance with the contract and reserve the right to take follow-up actions, the bureau said, adding that the Buildings Department and project owners will step up monitoring and surprise inspections to safeguard site safety.

Since the performance of ACCL in respect of the public works project of the Chai Wan Government Complex was far below the contractual requirements, the Government as the project owner has terminated the contract in accordance with the contractual mechanism and taken over the construction site on June 15.

The Government will endeavour to arrange in the near term for a new contractor to take over and finish the remaining works, the bureau added.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     The Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Miss Rosanna Law, visited Shanghai today (June 18). In the morning, she went to the Shanghai Museum on People’s Square and was given a guided tour of a well-received exhibition, “On Top of the Pyramid: The Civilization of Ancient Egypt”. During her visit, Miss Law met with Deputy Director of the Shanghai Museum Mr Huang He. She thanked the Shanghai Museum for its support of Hong Kong over the years, while Mr Huang shared experiences in developing and designing creative products. Miss Law said Hong Kong could learn a lot from the Shanghai Museum in developing cultural and creative industries. Miss Law expressed hope that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government (HKSARG) and the Shanghai Museum will strengthen their cultural co-operation in the future, contributing cultural content to the country’s modernisation and promoting cultural prosperity.
 
     After that, Miss Law called on the Director of the Shanghai Administration of Sports, Mr Xu Bin, and had a working lunch together, during which she shared with him Hong Kong’s progress and achievements in promoting sports development. Mr Xu said there is huge room for developing culture, sports and tourism, while sports exchanges serve as a bridge between the two places and can also boost economic and social developments. Miss Law said that Hong Kong, China athletes achieved excellent results in international competitions in recent years, which helps lift citizens’ interests in sports and support for athletes. Miss Law added that Hong Kong is preparing at full steam for the 15th National Games and the 12th National Games for Persons with Disabilities and the 9th National Special Olympic Games to be cohosted with Guangdong and Macao this November and December. Through today’s exchange, Miss Law said she hopes to learn from Shanghai’s experiences in hosting same events and further improve the preparatory work.
 
     In the afternoon, Miss Law visited the Memorial Hall of the First National Congress of the Communist Party of China and met with the Secretary of the Party Committee and Director of the Memorial, Mr Xue Feng. The Memorial is the site of the First National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) held in 1921, in which the founding of the CPC was announced, bearing great significance. Noting that the HKSARG is setting up a museum to introduce the country’s developments and achievements and preparing exhibitions related to the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, Miss Law said the visit was arranged intentionally to seek guidance, with an aim to make better preparations for the relevant projects in the future.
 
     In the evening, Miss Law attended the opening ceremony and dinner of WestK Shanghai Week 2025. Speaking at the event, she said that Hong Kong and Shanghai are connected by blood and share common traits, as they are both exemplars of the fusion of Eastern and Western cultures and dazzling Pearls of the Orient. The two places actively deepen international exchanges and co-operations in areas of economy, culture and globalisation, serving as pioneers in the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
 
     Miss Law also said, “The West Kowloon Cultural District (WKCD) is an important cultural infrastructure investment of the HKSARG. After many years of development, the WKCD has transformed from a blueprint into reality today and become one of the largest cultural hubs in the world, featuring performing arts venues with our country’s staunch support. The Hong Kong Palace Museum, which opened in 2022, and the M+ museum, which commenced operation in 2021, have become world-class museums blending traditional and contemporary arts and cultures.”
 
     “The West Kowloon Cultural District Authority (WKCDA) kick-started WestK Shanghai Week today. It is the first time a series of exhibitions and performing arts programmes and cultural exchange activities have been brought outside Hong Kong. It is not only an important milestone of the HKSARG driving top-notch arts, cultural and creative programmes to go global, but also showcases Hong Kong’s diverse arts achievements and further attracts local and overseas visitors to experience Hong Kong’s vibrancy and appeal firsthand,” Miss Law added.
 
     Supporting organisations of WestK Shanghai Week 2025 include the Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government, the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau of the HKSARG, and the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Shanghai of the HKSARG.
 
     This morning, Miss Law visited the “WestK x MANNER” limited-edition art collaboration themed store, jointly rolled out by the WKCDA and Shanghai’s beloved coffee brand MANNER COFFEE. The store invited Hong Kong’s renowned illustrator Don Mak to craft exclusive designs inspired by the Victoria Harbour skyline, WKCD panoramas and iconic Hong Kong urban motifs, demonstrating the creative charm of integrating culture, creative industry and tourism.
 
     Upon arrival yesterday (June 17), Miss Law had a working lunch with representatives of the management of Shanghai Shendi Group to exchange information on the latest tourism situation in Shanghai and Hong Kong. She also visited the Shanghai Disney Resort to learn about its operation and development. Miss Law said that the Shanghai Disney Resort and the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort are iconic attractions in the two places, which play vital roles in driving regional tourism and economic development.
 
     Miss Law will depart from Shanghai for Hong Kong tonight.

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

The Water Supplies Department (WSD) will work around the clock to replace a 400-metre-long steel water main by early July, that was believed to be the source of the bitumen sediments found in the fresh water at Queen’s Hill Estate and Shan Lai Court.

Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn told legislators today that the Government is highly concerned about the water incident at Queen’s Hill. Upon receiving the incident reports at the end of May, the WSD and the Housing Department (HD) formed a joint working group to probe the incident and formulate remedial measures.

The WSD has cleaned the water mains under its management and maintenance 11 times, while the HD has cleaned water pipes and water tanks under its purview six times and three times respectively.

The HD has also installed 22 screen filters at the water inlet of each building and the estates.

In addition, the WSD keeps collecting water samples from the estates for testing. So far, all samples have complied with the Hong Kong Drinking Water Standards.

Ms Linn noted that about 700 enquiries have been made to the 24-hour hotline since its set-up on June 7. Furthermore, the WSD has received over 1,500 requests for flushing water meters through community channels.

Such channels involved the street counters and home visits organised by District Council members, the three district committees and the Care Teams.

The WSD has completed the flushing of water meters within one to two days. Currently, most of the residents reported an improvement in water quality and follow-up action is not required.

The WSD believes that the black sediments in the fresh water originated from a steel water main at the upstream water supply network at Ping Che Road. The 400-metre-long water main uses bitumen as an inner lining that serves as a protective coating.

Over the past week, the WSD has explored the approach of using exposed temporary water mains to replace the steel water main.

It collaborated with the Development Bureau, the contractor, the Transport Department, Police and the North District Office to formulate traffic arrangements.

Through collective efforts, the WSD will immediately start the project and work around the clock to complete the temporary water mains by early July, when the specified section of bitumen-lined steel water mains will decommission.

The WSD will also strive to replace the exposed temporary water mains with a permanent underground water mains by the end of this year.

Ms Linn pointed out that the WSD has ceased applying bitumen lining on fresh water mains since 2005. Of the water pipes that still contain this type of lining, only about 230km are fresh water distribution mains, representing about 3.9% of the city’s total fresh water distribution mains.

Apart from installing over 1,000 screen filters in the related water supply network, the WSD is reviewing the necessity of installing additional screen filters at suitable locations, she added.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

​Following is a question by the Hon Yung Hoi-yan and a reply by the Secretary for Development, Ms Bernadette Linn, in the Legislative Council today (June 18):
 
Question:
 
     The earlier fresh water quality incidents at Queen’s Hill Estate and Shan Lai Court, as well as the water mains burst incident in Tuen Mun, have aroused public concern about the condition of water mains. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) of the staff establishment and work details of the working group established in connection with the water quality incidents at Queen’s Hill Estate and Shan Lai Court, including the estimated number of times that the water tanks will be cleansed and the water quality will be tested, as well as the expenditures involved; whether the group will investigate if the incidents involved human negligence; of the total number of enquiries or requests for assistance from residents on water quality problems received by the offices of the two housing estates/housing courts so far;
 
(2) as the Water Supplies Department has indicated that it will replace all pipes in Hong Kong which are still coated with bitumen, of the distribution of the pipes concerned in various districts in Hong Kong at present, the names of the housing estates/housing courts involved, as well as the timetable for the relevant pipe replacement work; whether it has plans to inspect the fresh water supply systems of all housing estates/housing courts in Hong Kong to ascertain that they will not accumulate bitumen, resin or other impurities; if so, of the details (including the timetable, the manpower and the expenditure involved); if not, the reasons for that, and the measures in place to prevent similar incidents; and
 
(3) whether it has plans to enhance the application of technology and artificial intelligence to conduct 24-hour continuous monitoring and analysis of the conditions of water mains and water quality, so as to identify abnormalities in water mains at an early stage and carry out repairs; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
     My reply to the questions raised by the Hon Yung Hoi-yan is as follows:
 
(1) The Government is highly concerned about the incident of bitumen sediments found in the fresh water at Queen’s Hill Estate and Shan Lai Court. After receiving reports of black spots in the water at the end of May, the Water Supplies Department (WSD) and the Housing Department (HD) immediately formed a joint working group to conduct a joint investigation on the incident and formulate measures to resolve the issue. The working group is co-led by the Director of Water Supplies and the Deputy Director (Estate Management) of the HD, with members including 11 staff such as in-service engineers and property management professionals responsible for the operation of the water supply facilities and estate management in that area. The WSD has cleaned 11 times for the water mains under its management and maintenance, while the HD has conducted six and three times of cleaning of the water pipes and water tanks under its management respectively. The HD has also installed 22 screen filters at the water inlet of each building and the estates. The WSD continues to collect water samples from the estates for testing. So far, all samples have complied with the Hong Kong Drinking Water Standards.
 
     Since the establishment with promotion of the 24-hour hotline on June 7, the Government has received a total of about 700 enquiries. In addition, the WSD has received over 1 500 requests for flushing water meters through various channels, including street counters and home visits organised by the members of District Council, the three district committees and the Care Teams, and the WSD has completed the flushing of water meters within one to two days. Currently, most of the residents reported an improvement in water quality and follow-up action is not required.
 
     The WSD believes that the black sediments in the fresh water originated from a 400-metre-long steel water main at the upstream water supply network at Ping Che Road. This water main uses bitumen as an inner lining serving as a protective coating, and the sediment is likely residue that was flushed into the inside service of the estates before the installation of screen filters at the WSD’s water mains by the end of 2022. We have set up an expert group consisting of the Chairman and two members of the Drinking Water Safety Advisory Committee (DWSAC) to assist with the traceability work. The expert group believes that the above assessment is reasonable. The WSD will submit an investigation report of the incident to the DWSAC for review in the near term.
 
     Learning from this experience, we should be able to make improvement in the aspects of the explanation process and handling time. We are now working at full steam on the various tasks and the expenditure involved is part of the expenditure of relevant departments in providing service, making it difficult to be separated out for the time being.
 
(2) Similar to Hong Kong, water mains with bitumen lining as protection still exist in the water supply systems of some advanced cities. The material is prone to peeling after prolonged use. The WSD has ceased applying bitumen lining on fresh water mains since 2005. At present, we have conducted further classification of water pipes that still contain this type of lining. Only about 230 km are fresh water distribution mains, representing roughly 3.9 per cent of Hong Kong’s total fresh water distribution mains. The distribution of their locations is set out at Annex of the reply.
 
     While the bitumen used in water supplies facilities is inert and insoluble in water, any peeled tiny particles in the water supply can still cause worries among the public. To address this situation, the WSD has installed over 1 000 screen filters in the related water supply network taking into account the amount of peeling, complaint cases and population supplied with the water, etc. These filters effectively prevent peeling materials from entering the inside service of the buildings. The WSD is reviewing the necessity of installing additional screen filters at suitable locations, and revising the guidelines to advise property management companies on the methods to maintain water mains and screen filters.
 
     To expedite the decommissioning of the water mains with bitumen lining at Ping Che Road related to Queen’s Hill incident, the WSD has explored to adopt an out-of-the-box approach over the past week by using exposed temporary water mains. They, together with the Development Bureau (DEVB) and the contractor, collaborate with the Transport Department, the Hong Kong Police Force and the North District Office on inter-departmental and collaborative basis to formulate traffic arrangements. Despite busy traffic conditions and narrow work space of the site, through collective efforts, the WSD will immediately commence the project and work around the clock to complete the temporary water mains by early July. In other words, this section of bitumen lining steel water mains will decommission from early July onwards. The WSD will also strive to replace the exposed temporary water mains with a permanent underground water mains by the end of this year.
 
     Last year, the WSD obtained funding approval from the Legislative Council for replacing or rehabilitating about 20 km (Note) of steel mains with bitumen lining on the inner wall. In response to this incident and ageing water mains burst, the WSD will submit short and medium term proposals for water mains replacement to the DEVB for review. We expect to discuss this at the meeting of the Panel on Development next month.
 
(3) The WSD will expand the monitoring area of Water Intelligent Network (WIN) to include fresh water trunk mains and all fresh water distribution mains. The sensors used for monitoring the water flow and pressure will also be upgraded to expedite the identification and repair of water mains with potential burst risk. The entire project is expected to be completed in 2027. We have asked the WSD to explore the possibility of early completion.
 
     The WSD will collaborate with the Hong Kong Polytechnic University to set up the joint laboratory of “In-line Robot” this August to conduct high-precision inspections of water mains.
 
     As regards the monitoring of water quality, the WSD has installed 24-hour online water quality monitoring systems in some key reservoirs and water treatment works. In addition, the WSD randomly collects water samples from some 28 000 consumers’ taps in Hong Kong for testing every year. The sampling ratio, testing methods, and parameters covered adhere to international standards. The WSD has also commenced a study since 2023 to construct more water quality monitoring points in the water supply network in the following few years to enhance the alert capability. The study is expected to be completed within this year.
 
     Thank you, President.
 
Note: Distributed in Sai Kung, Tuen Mun, Eastern and Sham Shui Po