EZ News 02/17/25

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. Tai-Ex opening The Tai-Ex opened up 105-points this morning from Friday's close, at 23,258 on turnover of 7.7-billion N-T. The market tumbled nearly 250-points on Friday - bucking a regional upswing as investors were spooked by concerns about U-S President Donald Trump's latest tariff threat to hit exports from countries he says have trade policies that are unfair to America. MOFA thanks US for updating fact sheet Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung is expressing his gratitude to the U-S State Department for reaffirming support toward Taiwan with what he's calling additions "of positive, Taiwan-friendly wordings." It comes after a fact sheet's contents were updated to remove a line indicating Washington's long-held stance of not supporting Taiwanese independence. It previously stated that the U-S opposes "any unilateral changes to the status quo from either side; we do not support Taiwan independence; and we expect cross-Strait differences to be resolved (秆∕) by peaceful means." However, in the updated version published the line stating that the U-S does not support Taiwan's independence had been removed. Audrey Tang extols Taiwan after Munich Cyber Security Conference And, Ambassador-at-large for cyber affairs, Audrey Tang says freedom and security are not mutually exclusive and has been talking-up Taiwan's approach to digital challenges. Speaking in Germany on the sidelines of the Munich Cyber Security Conference, Tang said "freedom and security are not a trade-off, but instead are a deepening of democracy .. … and "the stronger the social consensus, the greater the resilience and security, and the better able to withstand threats." Tang also addressed the conference, and in a 10-miunte speech she touted Taiwan using measures such as real-name registration for online advertisements, fighting online fraud and using artificial intelligence to enhance (矗蔼) democracy. Ukraine Refuses US Proposal for Minterals Access Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he directed his ministers not to sign off on a proposed agreement to give the United States access to Ukraineˇs rare earth minerals because the document was too focused on U.S. interests. The proposal, which was a key part of Zelenskyyˇs talks with U.S. Vice President JD Vance on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference on Friday, did not offer any specific security guarantees in return. That's according to one current and one former senior official familiar with the talks. US President Trump earlier this week jettisoned three years of U.S. policy and announced he would likely meet soon with Russian President Vladimir Putin to negotiate a deal to end almost three years of fighting. Pope Recovering After Respiratory Infection The Vatican says Pope Francis is stable, as he recovers (確) from a respiratory infection in the hospital. AP correspondent Julie Walker reports the Pope British Academy Film Awards Papal thriller ¨Conclave〃 won four prizes including best picture at the British Academy Film Awards, at a ceremony with no single dominant winner. ¨The Brutalist〃 also won four trophies on Sunday including best director for Brady Corbet. ¨The Brutalist〃 star Adrien Brody took the prize for best actor, and Mikey Madison won the best actress prize for ¨Anora.〃 Genre-bending musical ¨Emilia Perez〃 proved that itˇs still an awards contender despite a multipronged backlash that looked to have dented (ゴ阑) its chances. It won the prize for best film not in the English language and the best supporting actress prize for Zoe Saldana. Kieran Culkin was named best supporting actor for ¨A Real Pain.〃 That was the I.C.R.T. EZ News, I'm _____. -- Hosting provided by SoundOn