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Offshore Earthquake Shakes Taiwan; No Danger of Tsunami

Taiwan lies near the junction of two tectonic plates and is prone to earthquakes. (Reuters)
Taiwan lies near the junction of two tectonic plates and is prone to earthquakes. (Reuters)
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Offshore Earthquake Shakes Taiwan; No Danger of Tsunami

Taiwan lies near the junction of two tectonic plates and is prone to earthquakes. (Reuters)
Taiwan lies near the junction of two tectonic plates and is prone to earthquakes. (Reuters)

A strong earthquake struck off the east coast of Taiwan on Monday, shaking buildings in the capital, Taipei. No serious damage or injuries were reported, and authorities said there was no danger of a tsunami.

The magnitude 6.1 quake was centered 27 kilometers (17 miles) deep and about 90 kilometers (56 miles) offshore from the city of Hualien, Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau said. The strongest shaking was in northeastern Taiwan, including Taipei, The Associated Press said.

The earthquake's location was about 70 kilometers (44 miles) southwest of the remote island of Yonaguni at the western end of the Japanese archipelago. The Japanese Meteorological Agency said the quake measured magnitude 6.6, while the US Geological Survey said 6.3.

Preliminary measurements often differ and may be revised after further analysis.

The Japanese Meteorological Agency said there may be small swellings of ocean waters but there was no danger of a tsunami.
Chinese media said the earthquake was also felt in parts of mainland China. Self-governing Taiwan is about 160 kilometers (100 miles) east of the Chinese coast.

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Russian Defense Minister Visits North Korea to Talk with Military and Political Leaders

In this photo taken from a video released by the Russian Defense Ministry press service, Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, left, is welcomed by North Korean Defense Minister No Kwang Chol upon his arrival at Pyongyang International Airport outside Pyongyang, North Korea Friday, Nov.29, 2024. (Russian Defense Press Service via AP)
In this photo taken from a video released by the Russian Defense Ministry press service, Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, left, is welcomed by North Korean Defense Minister No Kwang Chol upon his arrival at Pyongyang International Airport outside Pyongyang, North Korea Friday, Nov.29, 2024. (Russian Defense Press Service via AP)
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Russian Defense Minister Visits North Korea to Talk with Military and Political Leaders

In this photo taken from a video released by the Russian Defense Ministry press service, Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, left, is welcomed by North Korean Defense Minister No Kwang Chol upon his arrival at Pyongyang International Airport outside Pyongyang, North Korea Friday, Nov.29, 2024. (Russian Defense Press Service via AP)
In this photo taken from a video released by the Russian Defense Ministry press service, Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, left, is welcomed by North Korean Defense Minister No Kwang Chol upon his arrival at Pyongyang International Airport outside Pyongyang, North Korea Friday, Nov.29, 2024. (Russian Defense Press Service via AP)

Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov arrived in North Korea on Friday for talks with North Korean military and political leaders as the countries deepen their alignment over Russia’s war on Ukraine.
The defense ministry in announcing the visit didn’t specify who Belousov would be meeting or the purpose of the talks. North Korean state media didn’t immediately confirm the visit.
Belousov, a former economist, replaced Sergei Shoigu as defense minister in May after Russian President Vladimir Putin started a fifth term in power.
The visit came days after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol met with a Ukrainian delegation led by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov in the South Korean capital of Seoul and called for the two countries to formulate countermeasures in response to North Korea’s dispatch of thousands of troops to Russia in support of its fight against Ukraine.
The United States and its allies have said North Korea has sent more than 10,000 soldiers to Russia in recent weeks and that some of those troops were engaging in combat.
North Korea has also been accused of supplying artillery systems, missiles and other military equipment to Russia that may help Russian President Vladmir Putin further extend an almost three-year war. There are also concerns in Seoul that North Korea in exchange for its troops and arms supplies could receive Russian technology transfers that could potentially advance the threat posed by leader Kim Jong Un’s nuclear weapons and missile program.
Yoon’s national security adviser, Shin Wonsik, said in a TV interview last week that Seoul assesses that Russia has provided air defense missile systems to North Korea in exchange for sending its troops.
Shin said Russia has also appeared to have given economic assistance to North Korea and various military technologies, including those needed for the North’s efforts to build a reliable space-based surveillance system. Shin didn’t say whether Russia has already transferred sensitive nuclear weapons and ballistic missile technologies to North Korea.
The Russian media report about Belousov’s visit came as South Korea scrambled fighter jets to repel six Russian and five Chinese warplanes that temporarily entered the country’s air defense identification zone around its eastern and southern seas, according to the South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff. The joint chiefs said the Russian and Chinese planes did not breach South Korea’s territorial airspace.