Taipei Times

2 days ago | taipeitimes.com | Catherine Pepinster

By Catherine Pepinster / The Guardian What is in a name? When it comes to a pope — everything. The white smoke from the Sistine Chapel told the world that a new pope to succeed Francis had been elected — and for the first time, the pontiff is from the US. However, if US President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance, a Catholic convert, are ready to cheer, then they should think again.

4 days ago | taipeitimes.com | Lo Tien-pin |Jake Chung

DEFENSE RESILIENCE: NT$150 billion would also be set aside to build ships for the coast guard to bolster its capabilities in countering China’s ‘gray zone’ tactics By Lo Tien-pin and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writer The government is planning a special budget, estimated at up to NT$500 billion (US$16.5 billion), for military purchases from the US, a high-level government official said yesterday on condition of anonymity.

4 days ago | taipeitimes.com | Eric Randolph

By Eric Randolph / AFP, NAIROBI To many, Tatu City on the outskirts of Nairobi looks like a success. The first city entirely built by a private company to be operational in east Africa, with about 25,000 people living and working there, it accounts for about two-thirds of all foreign investment in Kenya. Its low-tax status has attracted more than 100 businesses including Heineken, coffee brand Dormans, and the biggest call-center and cold-chain transport firms in the region.

4 days ago | taipeitimes.com | Adam Plowright

By Adam Plowright / AFP, PARIS At the annual gathering of France’s finest chefs for the Michelin Guide awards this year, the talk was not only about whose restaurants had gained or lost a star. “Everyone’s discussing AI [artificial intelligence]. I was at a table of 12 other chefs, and it was the main thing we talked about,” Matan Zaken, who runs the one-star Nhome restaurant in Paris, said at the event at the end of March.

4 days ago | taipeitimes.com | Lionel Laurent

By Lionel Laurent / Bloomberg Opinion Seven months after French President Emmanuel Macron praised the success of Emily in Paris, but bemoaned the lack of homegrown European broadcasters and distributors on par with series creator Netflix Inc.