Taiwan defence minister offers to resign-spokesman

TAIPEI - Taiwan Defence Minister Tang Yiau-ming offered on Monday to resign for health reasons, a ministry spokesman told Reuters.

Tang had offered to resign because of longstanding eye problems, spokesman Huang Shuey-sheng said.

Tang served in the government of President Chen Shui-bian throughout Chen's first four-year term in office. He left the Nationalist Party, defeated by Chen for the presidency both in 2000 and in a disputed election at the weekend, to join Chen's administration.

He had submitted his formal letter of resignation on Sunday, the spokesman said.

- REUTERS