Beijing's 18th Straits Forum, a platform for cross-strait engagement, is being held in Xiamen amid tightened restrictions by Taiwan's ruling DPP. For the first time, the DPP has explicitly banned Taiwan's municipal and county government officials from participating.
A Taiwanese army battalion commander has been punished for screening The Eight Hundred, a Chinese war film depicting KMT forces fighting Japanese troops in WWII. DPP lawmaker Wang Ting-yu revealed the screening by the 153rd Brigade in Yilan, prompting defence minister Wellington Koo Li-hsiung to confirm it was directed at battalion level. The controversy has ignited debate over Beijing's state-led messaging targeting Taiwan and questions about historical interpretation and military education on the island.
Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te has cancelled a planned visit to eSwatini, the island's last remaining African diplomatic ally. The visit was intended to celebrate King Mswati III's 40th anniversary of accession to the throne and his 58th birthday. eSwatini is one of only 12 nations that still recognize Taiwan, a group that includes small Caribbean and Pacific island states, many of which maintain ties partly due to pressure from Washington.
