Taiwan has named a military man as its new defence minister, less than 24 hours after his civilian predecessor resigned just six days into his tenure.
Today's appointment of career air force officer Yen Ming to the position raises questions about a possible power struggle over the defence minister's job. The post has taken on added significance following the death of a 24-year-old conscript in a military brig and growing ministry difficulties in transitioning to an all-volunteer force.
Yen replaces Andrew Yang, a respected academic, who announced his resignation late yesterday. Yang took responsibility for an article that a ghost writer prepared under his name in a 2007 book on China's People's Liberation Army that contained material lifted from another source.
