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DPP legislators and Liberal Democratic Party members of Japan's National Diet took part in a 2+2 meeting on March 21 and exchanged opinions on the bilateral relationship and national defense and security. Also on the 21st, German Education and Research Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger arrived in Taiwan for a visit. She signed an agreement for cooperation in science and technology with the Ministry of Science and Technology.DPP legislators and Liberal Democratic Party members of Japan's National Diet took part in a 2+2 meeting on the bilateral diplomatic relationship and defense policies on March 21. The Japanese delegation consisted of Iwao Horii, a member of the House of Councillors and Konosuke Kokuba, a member of the House of Representatives. They made a special visit to Taiwan for this meeting. It was the first time that the dialogue was held in person. It was also the first foreign affairs-related dialogue between Taiwanese and Japanese political parties since Vice President William Lai became the new DPP chairperson. DPP Legislator Kuo Kuo-wen sought to curry favor with the visitors, saying Taiwan was supporting Japan against Mexico and rooting for a comeback in the World Baseball Classic semifinals, which was taking place at the same time.Kuo Kuo-wen, Legislator (DPP): “We eagerly look forward to having the future opportunity to hold the 2+2 meeting between our political parties in Japan.”Iwao Horii, Member (LDP), Japanese House of Councillors: “We hope these talks will contribute to our joint safeguarding of the peace of the Indo-Pacific region.”The two sides discussed recent developments such as military reforms and the Indo-Pacific and Taiwan Strait situations. They said they hope this dialogue can become a normalized exchange between the two sides' ruling parties. In other news, a German minister heading a specialist government department visited Taiwan for the first time in 26 years. German Education and Research Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger arrived on March 21. She signed an agreement for cooperation in science and technology with the Ministry of Science and Technology.Bettina Stark-Watzinger, German Education and Research Minister: “It is a great pleasure and honor for me to be the first minister heading a specialist government department to visit Taiwan in 26 years. Taiwan, with its excellent research institutions, is a highly esteemed partner.”The minister's visit is meant to strengthen bilateral cooperation in academic research and education, including in semiconductors and Chinese language teaching. Meanwhile, Czech Chamber of Deputies Speaker Marketa Pekarova Adamova will arrive on March 25 as the head of a 150-strong delegation of businesspeople, scientists, and government officials. This will be the largest Czech business delegation to visit Taiwan in the past five years.民進黨與日本自民黨舉行「台日外交．防衛政策」2+2會談，自民黨參議員外交部會長堀井巖，與眾議員國防部會長國場幸之助，專程來台，不但是對話首度採實體會議，更是賴清德上任黨主席後，首次的台日政黨外交對話。由於適逢經典賽日墨4強大戰，郭國文更以台灣為日本應援，希望能夠逆轉勝，展現台日友好。民進黨立委郭國文指出：「更期待將來有機會能夠在日本舉辦我們兩黨之間的2+2對談。」日本自民黨參議員堀井巖提及：「共同維護印太區域和平，期待能在會談做出貢獻。」雙方就近來的國防軍事改革與印太台海局勢發展、台日關係進行實務討論，希望未來成為兩國執政黨常態性交流。另外睽違26年後有德國部長級官員訪台，德國教育及研究部長瓦特辛格21日抵台，並和國科會簽署台德科學及技術合作協議。德國教育及研究部長瓦特辛格表示：「很榮幸成為26年後首位來訪台的德國部長，台灣擁有優秀的研究機構，是備受推崇的合作夥伴。」瓦特辛格此行要強化與台灣的學術研究和教育合作，也聚焦半導體和華語教學，為台德雙邊關係進入新階段跨出第一步。歐洲現在友台力量增大，捷克眾議院議長艾達莫娃無視中國警告，將會在25日率領150位商人、科學家和官員訪台，這也是捷克5年來最大規模的商業出訪團。
The CDC's latest data show that the influenza epidemic has claimed two more lives, while four new cases of monkeypox have been reported, including three domestic cases. The total number of domestic monkeypox cases to date is 10, and registration for vaccines began March 21.The domestic monkeypox epidemic is heating up. The CDC has announced four new cases of monkeypox, and the infected persons are all Taiwanese males in their 30s and 40s. Three are domestic cases, located in New Taipei City, Miaoli County, and Yilan County. The fourth case was returning from Japan and 14 high-risk contacts have been identified. They will be monitored until March 27. The total number of domestic monkeypox cases now stands at 10.Lo Yi-chun, Deputy Director General, CDC: “We haven't found any links between domestic (monkeypox) cases, so they're all considered isolated cases. The main point is that the risk of community transmission continues to increase.”Meanwhile, the number of people seeking medical treatment for influenza reached 47,000 last week. The dominant strain is influenza A virus subtype H3N2. Two new deaths have been reported, one in their 50s and one in their 80s. Neither had received the current influenza vaccine.Lin Yung-ching, Medical Officer, CDC: “These two cases both had chronic diseases. Both had diabetes. There were also some nervous system or liver and kidney-related chronic diseases.”The CDC said the risk of community transmission of monkeypox continues to increase, so it moved up the date to register for vaccines to 3 p.m. on March 21. There will be one hospital in each of the six special municipalities designated as the vaccination site. For the first round, 2,500 vaccines are available, and the earliest they will be administered is on March 22 at Taoyuan General Hospital.國內猴痘疫情持續升溫，疾管署公布新增4例猴痘確定病例，均為本國籍男性，年齡介於30到40多歲，其中3例為本土病例，個案居住地分別為新北市、苗栗縣及宜蘭縣，另一例則為日本境外移入病例，已匡列高風險接觸者共14人，最長監測日將到3月27日為止，累計本土猴痘個案已有10例。疾管署副署長羅一鈞說明：「本土的猴痘病例，其實都沒有找到彼此的關聯性，所以都是屬於散發個案，主要還是社區的風險持續的提高。」另外流感病毒也持續發威，上週門急診類流感就診人次達4.7萬多人次，流感病毒主要以A型H3N2為主，並新增2例流感死亡病例，年齡為50多歲及80多歲，兩人都沒有接種過本季流感疫苗。疾管署防疫醫師林詠青指出：「這兩位個案都有慢性病史，那兩位都有糖尿病，那也有一些像是，就是神經系統，或者是肝腎方面的慢性病。」疾管署表示，考量猴痘社區傳播風險增加，因此提前到21日週二下午3時，開放猴痘疫苗意願登記平台，六都各設置一家合作醫院，提供高風險族群預約接種，首批將提供2500人份疫苗，最快22日週三衛福部桃園醫院就可開打。
DPP legislator Tsai Shih-ying's National Taipei University's doctoral dissertation was caught up in a plagiarism scandal during the mayoral election last year. The university said Tsai can retain his doctorate, but needs to add the missing citations. Tsai announced that he will not run for legislator re-election in 2024.Tsai Shih-ying, Legislator (DPP): “I have talked about this with my good friends who care about me. I think they all understand my thoughts. The most important thing to me is that Taiwan and Keelung remain in good standing. I feel like I can accomplish more important jobs by taking on different roles. So I will try my best to help the presidential campaign.”Tsai emphasized that he made his decision after careful consideration. He lost the mayoral election last year. During the campaign, Tsai was accused of pressuring the Ministry of National Defense to sell land at a cheap price, and he was also suspected of disputes with the mafia. His announcement was interpreted by others as trying to stop the bleeding and avoid affecting DPP's legislative election.民進黨立委蔡適應表示：「我有跟所有關心適應的好朋友都有談過，我想他們都能理解適應的想法，我最重要的是希望台灣好、基隆好，適應會覺得我在不同的角色可以扮演更多重要的工作，所以我會努力做好輔選的工作。」蔡適應強調是經審慎思考做出的決定。由於去年市長選戰落敗，選戰期間也捲入施壓國防部售地案，及與黑道糾葛疑雲，蔡適應宣布不參選連任，也被外界解讀，在為爭議案後座力止血，避免波及立委選舉。
