Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen’s inauguration speech yesterday delved into various areas concerning the future direction of Taiwan, but the most important aspect was the strong tone she set regarding the handling of cross-straits relations. Chuang Hui Liang and Edwin Ong analyse the nuances of her speech and gather reactions from Taiwan and mainland China.

Intransigence from the governments in Beijing and Taipei has kept a number of Taiwanese stranded in Wuhan, the epicentre of the Covid-19 outbreak. While views in Taiwan are split, academics have launched a petition calling for politics to take a backseat in the face of a humanitarian crisis.

​​The 2020 Taiwan presidential elections can be said to be one of the most elusive ones yet. Incumbent Taiwan president Tsai Ing-wen’s opinion poll ratings may be miles ahead of the Kuomintang’s presidential candidate, Han Kuo-yu, but the latter’s overwhelming support at rallies suggest that he is still very much in the game. Only the ballots cast on 11 January 2020 will determine if Tsai or Han will emerge victorious.