World News

By Fabian Hamacher and Ann Wang

TAOYUAN, Taiwan, May 5 (Reuters) – President Lai Ching-te arrived home on Tuesday from Eswatini saying Taiwan would not give in to pressure, having taken a circuitous route over the southern part of the Indian Ocean to avoid airspace controlled by close friends of China. 

China views democratically governed Taiwan as part of its territory with no right to state-to-state ties, a position Taiwan’s government strongly disputes, and Beijing has demanded countries stop any engagements with the island.

Lai’s government said China had forced three Indian Ocean states – the Seychelles, Mauritius and ​Madagascar – to deny overflight permission for his aircraft when he had planned to originally go last month, for celebrations for the 40th anniversary of the accession of King Mswati III.

Lai arrived in the former Swaziland, one of just 12 countries with formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, on Saturday, on a trip neither government had announced in advance and in defiance of Beijing’s anger, having taken the king’s private A340, previously operated by Taiwan’s China Airlines.

“The world belongs to everyone. Taiwan belongs to the world. Taiwanese people are citizens of the world. Taiwanese people have the right to engage with the world. We will not retreat in the face of suppression,” Lai said upon arrival at Taiwan’s main international airport at Taoyuan, outside of Taipei.

“The fact that this trip was obstructed at one point only made the world see Taiwan’s people’s firm determination and will to engage with the world,” he added.

CHINA LIKENED LAI TO A ‘RAT’

There was no immediate response from the Chinese government, which last week likened Lai to a “rat” for his “skulking” visit to Eswatini. 

Lai’s aircraft, the same A340, left Eswatini on Monday for Taiwan, taking a long route over the bottom part of the Indian Ocean, avoiding the flight information regions of Mauritius and ​Madagascar, which both have deep economic and diplomatic ties with Beijing.

Then aircraft then flew over Australia’s Christmas Island, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines, before entering Taiwan air space for arrival into Taoyuan, according to flight tracking apps.

Lai was accompanied on his flight by Eswatini Deputy Prime Minister Thulisile Dladla, whom he said had ensured he and his delegation travelled safely to and from Eswatini. Dladla had been in Taipei only last week as the king’s special envoy.

“This visit is not merely exercising diplomacy rights between states in order to foster friendly relations, it is also a demonstration of Taiwan’s will to uphold international order with all like‑minded countries,” Lai said.

China has ramped up its efforts to squeeze Taiwan’s international space, saying Lai is a “separatist” and the island merely a Chinese province with no right to the trappings of a state. Lai rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims, saying Taiwan has a right to engage with the world.

Taiwan is a “trusted and capable” partner of the United States and Taipei’s global relationships, including with Eswatini, provide significant benefits, the U.S. State Department said of Lai’s trip to Eswatini.

Prior to going to Africa, Lai’s last international trip was a tour of the Pacific, including stopovers in Hawaii and the U.S. territory of Guam, in late 2024.

(Reporting by Fabian Hamacher and Ann Wang; Writing and additonal reporting by Ben Blanchard in Taipei; Editing by Christian Schmollinger, Raju Gopalakrishnan and Christopher Cushing)

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By Heejin Kim

SEOUL, May 5 (Reuters) – Seoul said on Tuesday that authorities will investigate the cause of an explosion and fire on a South Korean-operated ship in the Strait of Hormuz in an incident U.S. President Donald Trump blamed on an Iranian attack.

“The exact cause of the accident would be figured out after the vessel is towed and its damage is assessed,” South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The Panama-flagged cargo ship operated by South Korean shipper HMM was empty and at anchor when the explosion and fire occurred on Monday.

The ministry said there were no casualties and the fire had been extinguished. The ship, named HMM Namu, would be towed to a nearby port so that the damage could be assessed and repairs carried out, the ministry said.

An HMM spokesperson said the 24 crew remained on board the 35,000-ton general cargo vessel.

The fire had broken out in the engine room and surveillance camera footage showed it had been extinguished, the spokesperson said.

British maritime risk management group Vanguard said authorities would investigate whether the damage might have been caused by an attack, a drifting sea mine or another external object.

In response to the incident, South Korea’s Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said on Tuesday it had asked Korean vessels in the area to move to safer locations and said authorities were in close communications with shipping companies and stranded vessels.

The South Korean government has said 26 South Korean-flagged vessels were stranded around the Strait of Hormuz.

In a post on the Truth Social platform, Trump said Iran had fired shots at the ship and other targets as the U.S. launched an operation seeking to open the Strait of Hormuz to shipping.

He suggested it could be time for South Korea to join his new effort to help guide stranded ships through the waterway typically used to carry about a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supplies.

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry, the Defence Ministry and the presidential office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Trump’s post.

South Korea has previously said it would carefully consider Trump’s call for countries to deploy navy ships to form a coalition to ensure safe passage through the waterway, while also stressing such a move would require legislative approval.

(Reporting by Heejin Kim and Jonathan Saul Editing by Ed Davies and Neil Fullick)

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FENGLIN, Taiwan (AP) — The Taiwanese town of Fenglin has grown a reputation as a place where life moves slowly and people can catch their breath.

Rather than push against this rhythm, the town of around 10,000 has chosen to embrace it and make it part of its identity. Enter the snails.

Fenglin has been putting on snail races as a way to celebrate its focus on a slower, sustainable lifestyle that values healthcare, longevity and community connections while bringing in more tourists in the wake of a strong earthquake in 2024 that dampened travel in surrounding areas.

“The earthquake two years ago had a relatively big impact on tourism because people are worried an earthquake may happen again,” said Hsu Lu, a 32-year-old resident. “Many people have left Hualien because of earthquakes,” Hsu said, referring to the surrounding county and the site of frequent quakes.

Snails are one way to bring tourists back, even if slowly.

Fenglin has associated itself with snails since 2014, when it joined the Cittaslow international network of small cities focused on quality of life and locally sourced foods. Cittaslow’s symbol is a snail carrying an assortment of buildings on its back.

The designation of a slow city seemed to fit Fenglin, whose population has shrunk threefold over the past few decades. Today, it is also an example of Taiwan’s “super-aged” society, with more than 20% of its residents older than 65.

To help reinvigorate local tourism after the April 2024 earthquake, which killed 19 people and injured more than 1,100, Fenglin residents decided to host a snail race the following month, said organizer Cheng Jen-shou.

“We thought that our event could attract people, and that would be a small help,” he said.

This year, the town held the third edition of the race over the May Day holiday.

Several dozen enthusiastic residents and tourists attended the event, which featured six snail races spaced out over two days. The winners from each race competed in the final, but not before posing in front of their audiences while slowly being pulled on a piece of plywood across a green carpet as their fans cheered them on.

Li Cheng-wen, a 70-year-old retiree from Fenglin, brought several snails to the race. He caught them in his vegetable garden snacking on his leafy greens, and instead of killing them as some farmers do, he decided to raise them as pets, he said. He feeds them slices of bananas, papaya and vegetable leaves and showers them daily.

“As to the criteria for choosing snails for the race, I usually select those that are very active and pleasing to the eye,” Li said.

Kelvin Hong and Tiara Lin also brought a sightly snail to the race. The couple traveled all the way from the southern city of Kaohsiung, about a five-hour drive away, together with their 2-year-old daughter, Murphy, and their giant African snail, Aquaman.

The couple had signed up Aquaman for a previous race in 2024, but just as they were headed for Fenglin, Lin went into labor. Now the whole family returned to cheer on Aquaman.

Despite being larger than most of its homegrown competitors — which had been picked out from local gardens or the side of the road — Aquaman was rather slow.

Once the race started, it and nine other snails were placed near the center of a round table covered with a thin vinyl sheet. The first to reach the edge of the table was crowned the winner.

The absolute champion was Guage, or Brother Snail. Its owner, 39-year-old Tanya Lin from Hualien, had been raising the snail since 2024, when it also won one race.

This year, Brother Snail crossed the 33-centimeter (13-inch) tablecloth in 3 minutes and 3 seconds. That performance earned it the top spot on a tiny stadium and a prize of organic sweet potato leaves.

Besides the snail race, the local government has been trying to attract tourism by offering guided e-bike tours with stops at historic tobacco barns, Japanese colonial-era buildings and a Hakka-minority museum.

The idea of a slower pace of life was compelling enough to attract university students Annette Lin and Tanya Liu, who rode the train for about 30 minutes from Hualien on Saturday to check out the snail race and Fenglin’s slow vibes.

The friends found the competition unique and enjoyed Fenglin’s leisurely pace — but only as a respite from the busy city life.

“I think for travel or a trip, it’s a great choice,” Liu said. “But maybe living here would not really be my dream choice.”

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May 4 (Reuters) – The U.S. military said on Monday that it struck a vessel in the Caribbean, killing two people, alleging that the vessel struck was operated by “designated terrorist organizations” that it did not identify.

The U.S. Southern Command said that no U.S. military forces were harmed. It described those killed as “male narco-terrorists,” without offering details.

This is the latest such attack condemned by rights groups as “extrajudicial killings” and which the Trump administration says are aimed at “narco-terrorists.”

(Reporting by Akanksha Khushi in Bengaluru; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)

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TAOYUAN, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said Tuesday it was a basic right for countries to hold state visits, as he returned from his three-day trip to the African kingdom of Eswatini, which his government says China tried to block.

Lai was supposed to travel to the country, one of Taiwan’s 12 remaining diplomatic partners last month, but had to cancel the initial trip owing to Chinese pressure, Taiwan’s government said.

China pressured three countries to revoke flight permits, denying Lai transit through their airspace, Taiwan’s government said. China did not confirm whether or not they had pressured the countries, but thanked them for their support for Beijing’s one-China principle.

Undeterred, Lai rescheduled the trip, arriving in Eswatini on May 2, where he discussed cooperation on economic, agricultural, cultural and educational ties.

“Just like going out to visit friends, this is every country’s basic right,” he said upon his arrival back in Taiwan Tuesday. “This trip, which was subject to obstruction, actually let the world see the Taiwanese public’s determination and will to be a part of the world.”

China claims self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory, to be retaken by force if necessary, and prohibits countries it has diplomatic relations with from maintaining formal ties with Taipei.

In practice, Taiwan is self-ruled. However, it faces increasing pressure from China on all fronts. China’s military sends fighter jets and navy vessels towards Taiwan on a near-daily basis, while also pressuring countries to cut their diplomatic relations with the island through a mixture of economic incentives and pressure.

Over the weekend, organizers of a human rights conference in Zambia canceled the event after China pressured the host country to exclude Taiwanese activists.

Lai took a moment to thank the deputy prime minister of Eswatini Thulisile Dladla, who had accompanied them on the trip, for her role in ensuring “a smooth round trip” for everyone. Dladla had traveled to Taiwan at the end of April.

“Taiwan’s actions shows that the real display of power of a country isn’t in having others submit to you, but to bring prosperity to everyone,” he added.

___

Wu reported from Bangkok

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May 4 (Reuters) – Fire broke out at a major UAE oil industry zone on Monday after a drone attack originating from Iran, authorities said, as the Gulf state’s military separately intercepted three Iranian missiles over its waters and a fourth crashed into the sea.

Civil defence teams were deployed immediately to contain the blaze at the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone, the Fujairah Media Office said in a statement, adding that three Indian citizens were moderately injured in the attack and taken to hospital.

The UAE defence ministry said on X that its forces had intercepted three missiles, with a fourth falling into the sea.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Navy issued a map it said showed an expansion of areas under Iranian control near the Strait of Hormuz, encompassing the UAE ports of Fujairah and Khorfakkan as well as the coast of the Umm Al Quwain emirate, Iranian news agencies reported.

The drone attacks shattered a period of relative calm in the UAE since a Pakistani-mediated ceasefire between Washington and Tehran took effect on April 8, pausing more than two months of intense fighting in the Gulf region.

During the period of intense conflict, the UAE said it had intercepted and destroyed thousands of drones and missiles.

UAE authorities on Monday issued mobile phone alerts in Dubai and Abu Dhabi warning of the possibility of missile attacks. 

Monday’s strike was not the first time Fujairah’s energy infrastructure had been in the crosshairs. A drone attack on March 14 had previously hit the Port of Fujairah, triggering fires and the suspension of some oil-loading operations.

Fujairah has been critical to UAE oil exports during the Iran war as it sits at the end of the Abu Dhabi Crude Oil Pipeline, which carries crude from inland fields to the Gulf of Oman, bypassing the Strait of Hormuz.

This has allowed the UAE to continue shipping oil to global markets even as the waterway remained under threat.

(Reporting by Reuters bureaus; Editing by Alexander Smith)

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VIENNA, May 4 (Reuters) – The parliamentary leader of Austria’s ruling conservatives, August Woeginger, stepped down on Monday moments after a court convicted him of misuse of office and handed him a seven-month suspended prison sentence and a 43,200 euro ($50,600) fine.

The case centred on Woeginger’s intervention on behalf of a mayor from his party who was applying for the position of head of the local tax office in Braunau am Inn, on the German border.

The ruling could be a watershed moment in Austrian politics as it penalises officials allegedly involved in appointing a party loyalist over a more qualified candidate, in a country where two centrist parties carved up most top administrative posts between them for decades after World War Two.

Woeginger, a top figure in Chancellor Christian Stocker’s Austrian People’s Party (OVP), has maintained his innocence and said he never meant to exert undue influence, but also that in retrospect he would not do the same thing again.

“While I still expect to be acquitted on appeal, I will nevertheless – regardless of further legal steps – resign from my post of OVP parliamentary leader with immediate effect,” Woeginger said in a statement, adding that he planned to stay on as an OVP lawmaker.

Woeginger had spoken about the mayor’s candidacy to the then top civil servant in the finance ministry, OVP loyalist Thomas Schmid, who allegedly worked with two members of a committee that reviewed candidates for the job to promote the mayor’s candidacy.

Those two committee members were co-defendants in the case and both were convicted of misuse of office and perjury, and handed the same seven-month suspended sentence as Woeginger along with smaller fines. Schmid turned state witness in this and other cases involving his former OVP allies.

The mayor was awarded the job over a better qualified candidate, who filed a complaint.

The ruling is a blow to the OVP, which has stayed in power since its then-Chancellor Sebastian Kurz was forced to quit in 2021 over corruption allegations he denies. The OVP now heads a three-party coalition in which each member is trailing the far-right Freedom Party in opinion polls.

“It is a verdict at first instance with a very harsh sentence,” Chancellor Stocker said in a statement. “Personally, I would have wished August Woeginger an acquittal.”

($1 = 0.8538 euros)

(Reporting by Francois Murphy; Editing by Susan Fenton)

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WASHINGTON, May 4 (Reuters) – The U.S. military has destroyed six Iranian small boats and intercepted Iranian cruise missiles and drones fired by Tehran as the U.S. launches an operation to free up shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, U.S. Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of Central Command, said on Monday.

Cooper said he “strongly advised” Iranian forces to remain clear of U.S. military assets as it launches the operation. He said a U.S. blockade of Iran, which prevents ships from going to Iran or departing Iranian territory, also remains in effect and was exceeding expectations.

(Reporting by Phil Stewart and Idrees AliEditing by Nick Zieminski)

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By James Mackenzie

BERLIN, May 4 (Reuters) – Chancellor Friedrich Merz marks a year in office this week facing the biggest crisis with Washington in decades, after President Donald Trump said he would hit European auto imports with 25% tariffs and pull thousands of troops out of Germany.

The moves, announced on Friday after Trump reacted angrily to criticism by Merz of U.S. strategy in the Iran war, underline the break in transatlantic relations that has become increasingly apparent in Trump’s second term and add to an array of problems now facing the German leader.

“We can see what’s going on with Donald Trump and the U.S., and that this is having an impact. We can see that China is getting stronger and stronger,” Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil, Merz’s deputy and the head of his Social Democrat coalition partners, told Reuters.

“We can see that Europe isn’t strong enough. In this regard, a great deal depends on Germany.”

MERZ’S CONSERVATIVES TRAILING IN OPINION POLLS

After two years of recession, a timid recovery risks being extinguished by the energy shock from the Iran conflict, a promised package of tax, welfare and health reforms has been overshadowed by coalition wrangling.

Merz’s freewheeling communication style, which he himself acknowledges is sometimes impulsive, has also irritated voters.

Already squeezed by stifling competition from China, carmakers, the backbone of Germany’s industrial base, now face a spike in tariffs from 15% to 25% from one of their most important export markets.

In an interview with German public television on Sunday, Merz, who was sworn into office on May 6 last year, acknowledged public doubts, reflected in opinion polls that now put the far-right Alternative for Germany ahead of his conservatives as the country’s most popular party.

“The doubts are growing. Not about me, but about the coalition,” he said.

For much of his first year, Merz has made up for discontent at home with a relatively assured performance abroad, for a while enjoying a reputation as one of the few European leaders to establish a good personal relationship with Trump.

“He has strengthened key relationships, particularly with France and Poland, and has secured European influence in the context of the war in Ukraine through forums such as the E3,” said Oliver Lembcke, a political scientist at Ruhr University Bochum, adding that Merz’s main problem was at home.

“In domestic policy, he’s fallen short of expectations – particularly when it comes to leadership.”

A fluent English speaker, Merz continues to believe in the U.S. alliance, which he has sought to preserve while Germany rebuilds its own depleted armed forces after decades of neglect.

With the war in Ukraine still raging on the European Union’s doorstep, he has also moved carefully to try to persuade Trump not to turn against Kyiv entirely. 

But he has repeatedly warned that the era of relying on U.S. forces to protect Europe is over and has become increasingly critical of the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, refusing to send German forces to help clear the strategic Strait of Hormuz until fighting stops and a full international mission is agreed.

MUCH DEPENDS ON GERMANY

The events of the past week, however, have made clear how fine a line there is to tread with a U.S. administration that has made no secret of its disdain for Europe’s leaders, even those like Merz or Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni who were once praised by Trump.

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius downplayed the significance of Trump’s decision to withdraw at least 5,000 troops from Germany and withhold the planned deployment of Tomahawk cruise missiles, saying at the weekend that the move came as no surprise.

Merz denied that the decision was prompted by his remark to students last week that the U.S. had no exit strategy in Iran and was being “humiliated”, despite Trump’s angry social media attacks on the chancellor he once called a friend.

Such communication snags have marked Merz’s year in office, including when he sparked outrage last year by suggesting that migration had altered the appearance of German towns.

But Trump’s impatience with Europe has been abundantly clear throughout his time in office, notably since Vice President JD Vance’s stinging attack at last year’s Munich Security Conference.

“I think that just sped things up, but it wasn’t what set it off,” said Roderich Kiesewetter, a member of the parliamentary foreign affairs committee from Merz’s conservative CDU party. He said scrapping a Biden-era plan to deploy a U.S. battalion with long-range Tomahawk missiles was more serious for Germany.

“That undermines our deterrent. And it undermines trust in the U.S. And that is the real bad news,” he said.

It remains unclear exactly what troops will be withdrawn from the 40,000 U.S. forces stationed in Germany and how that will affect some of the biggest U.S. military facilities outside the United States, including the sprawling Ramstein air base.

Although polls show Trump is deeply unpopular in Germany and public opinion overwhelmingly backs staying out of the war with Iran, the presence of U.S. troops has become a fixture for Germans in the western part of the country.

In Landstuhl, home to one of the biggest U.S. military hospitals, local resident Maria Raftopoulo said relationships between locals and U.S. personnel had been deep over the years. 

“And even though there are fewer Americans now, they still provide jobs, they still rent, they contribute to the region doing as well as it does.”

(Reporting by James Mackenzie; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

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By Parisa Hafezi and Jacob Bogage

DUBAI/DORAL, Florida, May 4 (Reuters) – A tanker reported being hit by unknown projectiles in the Strait of Hormuz, a maritime security organisation said on Monday, shortly after President Donald Trump said the U.S. would start helping free ships stranded in the Gulf by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.

Trump provided few details about the plan, which he said would start on Monday to aid ships and their crews that have been “locked up” in the vital waterway and are running low on food and other supplies. 

“We have told these Countries that we will guide their Ships safely out of these restricted Waterways, so that they can freely and ably get on with their business,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social site.

Hundreds of ships and as many as 20,000 seafarers have been unable to transit the strait during the conflict, according to the International Maritime Organization.

U.S. Central Command said it would support the effort with 15,000 U.S. military personnel, more than 100 land and sea-based aircraft along with warships and drones. The operation aims to “restore freedom of navigation for commercial shipping” through the strait, CENTCOM said in a statement. 

“Our support for this defensive mission is essential to regional security and the global economy as we also maintain the naval blockade,” Admiral Brad Cooper, the CENTCOM commander, said in a statement.

Soon after Trump’s comments, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency said a tanker had reported being hit by unknown projectiles in the Strait.

UKMTO said all crew were reported safe in the incident, which occurred 78 nautical miles north of Fujairah, in the United Arab Emirates.

Iran has been blocking nearly all shipping from the Gulf apart from its own for more than two months, sending energy prices soaring. Some vessels attempting to transit the Strait have reported being fired on, and Iran seized several other ships. Last month, the U.S. imposed its own blockade of ships from Iranian ports.

The Trump administration has been seeking help from other countries to form an international coalition to secure shipping in the strait. CENTCOM said the latest effort would combine “diplomatic action with military coordination.”

It was not immediately clear which countries the U.S. operation would aid or how the operation would work. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Trump threatened that any interference with the U.S. operation would “have to be dealt with forcefully.” 

Iran said on Sunday it had received a U.S. response to its latest offer for peace talks a day after Trump said he would probably reject the Iranian proposal because “they have not paid a big enough price.”

Trump, responding to shouted questions from reporters, said on Sunday evening that talks were going “very well” without elaborating. 

IRAN REVIEWING U.S. RESPONSE ON PEACE PROPOSAL

Iranian state media reported that Washington had conveyed its response to Iran’s 14-point proposal via Pakistan, and that Tehran was now reviewing it. There was no immediate confirmation from Washington or Islamabad of the U.S. response.

“At this stage, we do not have nuclear negotiations,” state media quoted Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei as saying, an apparent reference to Iran’s proposal to set aside talks on nuclear issues until after the war has ended and the foes have agreed to lift opposing blockades of Gulf shipping.

On Saturday, Trump said he had yet to review the exact wording of the Iranian peace proposal, but that he was likely to reject it.

The United States and Israel suspended their bombing campaign against Iran four weeks ago, and U.S. and Iranian officials held one round of talks. But attempts to set up further meetings have so far failed.

IRAN’S PROPOSAL VS WASHINGTON’S DEMANDS

The proposal to delay talks on nuclear issues until a later phase would appear at odds with Washington’s repeated demand that Iran accept stringent restrictions on its nuclear program before the war can end. 

Washington wants Tehran to give up its stockpile of more than 400 kg (900 pounds) of highly enriched uranium, which the United States says could be used to make a bomb. Iran says its nuclear program is peaceful although it is willing to discuss some curbs in return for the lifting of sanctions. It had accepted such curbs in a 2015 deal that Trump abandoned.

While saying repeatedly he is in no hurry, Trump is under domestic pressure to break Iran’s hold on the Strait of Hormuz, which has choked off 20% of the world’s oil and gas supplies and pushed up U.S. gasoline prices. Trump’s Republican Party faces the risk of a voter backlash over higher prices in midterm congressional elections in November.

Iranian media said Tehran’s 14-point proposal includes withdrawing U.S. forces from nearby areas, lifting the blockade, releasing frozen assets, paying compensation, lifting sanctions, ending the war on all fronts including Lebanon, and creating a new control mechanism for the strait.

(Reporting by Reuters bureaux; Writing by Andrew Goudsward; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)

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