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FOCUS November 2016

 

Category - Official Text

  1. 美國在台協會處長梅健華參加第四屆永續物料國際研討詞。 Click to read the full-text
    Remarks by Director Kin Moy at the Fourth International Conference on Sustainable Materials Management, Songshan Cultural and Creative Park. Click to read the full-text
    OT-1621, October 26, 2016, 1 page.
    The United States is proud to continue our cooperation with Taiwan through the International Environmental Partnership, or IEP. This partnership has created a platform for the United States and Taiwan to jointly provide technical assistance and pursue cooperative efforts with countries across Asia and around the world. “ (From AIT)
  2. 美國在台協會處長梅健華 AIC -美國創新體驗館開幕典禮致詞。 Click to read the full-text
    Remarks by AIT Director Kin Moy at the Opening Ceremony of the American Innovation Pavilion.
    Click to read the full-text
    OT-1620,  October 12, 2016. 1 page.
    “Organized jointly by AIT and the Taiwan Design Center, the American Innovation Pavilion showcases innovative technologies and their applications through interactive experiences, activities and exhibitions.“ (From AIT)
  3. 美國在台協會副處長傅德恩 2016美台全球合作暨訓練架構電子商務促進研習班致詞。 Click to read the full-text
    Remarks by AIT Deputy Director Robert Forden at the GCTF E-Commerce Workshop. Click to read the full-text
    OT-1619, October 5, 2016, 2 pages.
    “The GCTF is a vehicle for the United States and Taiwan to jointly address emerging global and regional challenges by providing training to colleagues and experts from around the Asia-Pacific region.” (From AIT)

Category - International Relations

  1. Bader, Jeffrey A.
    A Framework for U.S. Policy Toward China. Click to read the full-text 
    The Brookings Institution, October 10, 2016, 18 pages.
    “There are three broad options for the United States to respond to the China challenge: 1) accommodation; 2) containment, confrontation, or untrammeled strategic rivalry; and 3) global cooperation paired with regional resolve. The third option is best, in my view, because we need to find a middle course that would safeguard the array of conflicting interests we have. U.S.-China cooperation is possible on many global issues, which has already been demonstrated on climate change, cooperation in the P5+1 negotiations to roll back Iran’s nuclear weapons program, and foreign assistance, for example.” (From the Brookings Institution)
  2. Michael J. Mazarr and others.
    Understanding the Current International Order. Click to read the full-text
    Rand, October 19, 2016, 81 pages.
    "RAND researchers examine the international order in effect since World War II, including the mechanisms by which the order affects state behavior, the engines that drive states to participate, and the U.S. approach to the order since 1945.” (From Rand)
  3. Wike, Richard and Bruce Stokes.
    Chinese Public Sees More Powerful Role in World, Names U.S. as Top Threat. Click to read the full-text
    Pew Research Center, October 5, 2016
    “As China’s economy has grown, so too has its role in world affairs. An increasingly assertive China has challenged the geopolitical balance of power in Asia and extended its economic reach in Africa, Latin America, Europe and elsewhere. The Chinese people recognize their country’s growing prominence: 75% say China is playing a more important role in world affairs than it did 10 years ago. Only 10% of the Chinese believe that they are a less powerful player in the global arena.” (From Pew Research Center )

 

Category - Economics

  1. Kerry, John.
    Remarks on the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Click to read the full-text
    U.S. Department of State, September 28, 2016, 6 pages.
    “What is America’s role in the world, and how should we play it?
    And today, the answer, in my judgment, much more clear after almost four years as Secretary of State than it has ever been in my life, and that is that we, the United States, have to lead and our leadership requires us to pursue high-standard, innovative initiatives like the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP – a proposed agreement that is not only about boosting our economy at home and deepening our commercial ties in key markets, but an agreement that is also about strengthening our national security and strategic leadership in Asia and across the globe.” (From U.S. Department of State)
  2. Schott, Jeffrey J. and others.
    Prospects for Taiwan’s Participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Click to read the full-text
    Peterson Institute for International Economics, September 2016, 40 pages.
    “In some areas Taiwan’s existing bilateral agreements with China and TPP members New Zealand and Singapore have significant gaps with TPP standards, while others should not be as difficult to bridge. The Briefing also considers the sttus of US-Taiwan trade and investment relations and outstanding bilateral irritants, including concerns over agricultural market access and animal health and safety regulations, Taiwanese foreign direct investment restrictions and approval process, IPRs, and exchange rate policy. Resolving these issues will be critical for US support for Taiwan’s TPP participation.” (From Peterson Institute for International Economics)

 

 Category - Politics 

  1. In Presidential Contest, Voters Say ‘Basic Facts,’ Not Just Policies, Are in Dispute. Click to read the full-text
    Pew Research Center, October 14, 2016, 7 pages.
    “In the contentious weeks leading up to Election Day, voters are deeply divided over the candidates, major issues and the nation’s past and future course. And, in a new survey, most voters say these differences even extend to disputes over basic facts.” (From Pew Research Center)
  2. Kaufman, Julia H. and others.
    What Are Teachers' and School Leaders' Major Concerns About New K–12 State Tests?  Click to read the full-text
    Rand, October 18, 2016, 8 pages.
    “This report shares U.S. principals' and teachers' concerns about implementation of state assessment tests aligned to the new standards, drawing on survey data from RAND's American Teacher Panel (ATP) and American School Leader Panel (ASLP). (From Rand)
  3. Mark J. Warshawsky.
    Modernizing Social Security. Click to read the full-text
    National Affairs, Number 29, Fall 2016, 14 pages.
    “Social Security suffers from unequal benefits and an obsolete structure unsuited to the 21st-century economy. By recognizing the changing nature of today’s economy and workforce, the reforms proposed here would make Social Security more sustainable, fair, relevant, and adaptable for both retirees and disabled workers. Only by implementing this new vision of Social Security can we continue to provide the quality and dependable retirement support that all Americans expect and deserve.” (From National Affairs)
  4. Neale, Thomas H.
    Presidential Elections: Vacancies in Major-Party Candidacies and the Position of President-Elect. Click to read the full-text
    Washington, D.C. : Congressional Research Service, October 6, 2016, 11 pages., 2016.
    “This report examines succession procedures that apply to major party nominees for President and Vice President during the presidential election campaign and the first phase of the transition period, and for President-elect and Vice President-elect during the second phase of the transition period.” ( From CRS Report)

Category - Global Issues

  1. Connor, Phillip.
    Middle East’s Migrant Population More Than Doubles Since 2005. Click to read the full-text
    Pew Research Center, October 18, 2016, 6 pages.
    "Between 2005 and 2015, the number of migrants living in the Middle East more than doubled, from about 25 million to around 54 million, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of data from United Nations agencies. Some of this growth was due to individuals and families seeking economic opportunities. But the majority of the migration surge, especially after 2011, was a consequence of armed conflict and the forced displacement of millions of people from their homes, many of whom have left their countries of birth. The rapid rise in the number of people looking for safe havens and new livelihoods has over the past decade transformed the Middle East into the world region with the fastest growing international migrant and forcibly displaced population, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of data from United Nations agencies.” ( From Pew Research Center)
  2. Hoff, Rachel.
    Primer: North Korea’s Nuclear Weapons Program and International Economic Sanctions. Click to read the full-text 
    American Action Forum, September 27, 2016, 7 pages.
    “The United States has had economic sanctions in place against North Korea since the Korean War in 1953. The United Nations (UN) has placed significant economic and financial sanctions on North Korea in response to the development of its nuclear program since the mid-2000s. This year, it apears that China may actually be restricting trade with North Korea—a significant step, as Chinese enforcement is the key to effective sanctions. Despite these sanctions, in the past 10 years, North Korea has conducted five nuclear tests. ” ( From American Action Forum )
  3.  Leggett, Jane A.
    Paris Climate Change Agreement to Enter into Force November 4. Click to read the full-text
    Washington, D.C. : Congressional Research Service, October 5, 2016, 2 pages., 2016.
    “The Paris Agreement (PA), which addresses climate change through international cooperation, is set to take effect on November 4, 2016. With the ratifications by the European Union, seven EU member states, New Zealand, and India—along with earlier actions by the United States, China, and other countries—the threshold was passed for the treaty to enter into force: Entry into force occurs on the 30th day after at least 55 countries, representing at least 55% of officially reported greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, deposit their ratifications, acceptances, or approvals with the United Nations treaty depositary. As of October 5, 2016, 72 governments (including the European Union) representing more than 56% of global GHG emissions had deposited their instruments. In all, 191 governments, including Russia, signed the PA;hey do not become parties to it until they have deposited their instruments.” (From CRS report)

Category - Innovation

  1.  Gates, Bill.
    Accelerating Innovation with Leadership. Click to read the full-text
    The Blog of Bill Gates, October 6, 2016, 4 pages. 
    “Because we are at a pivotal moment when the conditions are ripe for transformative innovations, there are many important things this new group of national leaders—including whoever is elected in the U.S. in November—can accomplish over the next decade. There are four objectives I think we should prioritize: Provide everyone on earth with affordable energy without contributing to climate change; Develop a vaccine for HIV and a cure for neurodegenerative diseases; Protect the world from future health epidemics, which might be more infectious than Ebola and more deadly than Zika; Give every student and teacher new tools so all students get a world-class education.” (From the blog of Bill Gates)
  2.  Kerry, Cameron F.
    Bridging the Internet-Cyber Gap: Digital Policy Lessons for the next Administration. Click to read the full-text
    The Brookings Institution, October 7, 2016, 35 pages.
    “The purpose of this paper is to brand those lessons schooled and to offer superintendence for a subsequent boss and administration to safeguard they proceed a digital process globe appropriately—and comprehensively. Kerry’s recommendation involves avoiding some of a failures of a final seven-plus years and building on their successes.” (From the Brookings Institute)

 

 
     

 


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