Provocations and tension from China are on the rise, but Taiwan is always prepared to defend itself — with or without US help — former minister of national defense Andrew Yang (楊念祖) told a Washington conference on Thursday.
“We always assume that defending ourselves is our own responsibility,” Yang said.
Now an assistant professor at National Sun Yat-sen University, Yang was answering a question as to whether Taiwan had an “unrealistic expectation” about when US help would arrive — or even if it would arrive at all — in the case of a Chinese invasion.
Photo: Taipei Times
“I get asked this question all the time,” he said.
Yang said that as a “responsible, accountable government,” Taipei had to assume it might have to stand alone.
He repeated that in terms of national defense policy, the nation had to take responsibility for itself.
“It is a commitment we have made to our own survival and to our people, and that is very important,” Yang said.
He also told the Jamestown Foundation’s fifth annual China Defense and Security Conference held at the Carnegie Endowment that cybersecurity was “high on the agenda” in terms of defense.
Yang said that Taiwan faced millions of cyberattacks from China and that they came on a daily basis.
He said that Chinese expansion of air and naval activities in the East and South China seas added tension and the threat of escalation to the region.
“Taiwan inevitably is facing challenges and threats in the course of military and security game changes,” he said.
In addition, Taiwan’s challenges and threats were “more imminent” than those faced by other US allies in the region, Yang said.
The military threat from China has remained a daily reality, he said.
“Beijing still holds the option to employ the use of force to achieve political unification,” Yang said.
In a paper prepared for the conference, Yang said that Taiwan and the US shared common concerns regarding the strategic and security situation, particularly China’s increasing naval and air power projection into the East China Sea.
BAIL APPEALS: The former vice premier was ordered to be held incommunicado despite twice being granted bail and paying a total of NT$12 million in bond The Taoyuan District Court yesterday ordered the detention of former vice premier Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦), who is being investigated for alleged corruption while serving as Taoyuan mayor from December 2014 to December 2022, and that he be held incommunicado. The court made the ruling during a bail hearing after prosecutors appealed its bail ruling twice. Cheng on Saturday was released after posting bail of NT$5 million (US$153,818). However, after prosecutors lodged an appeal, the High Court on Monday revoked the original ruling and ordered the Taoyuan District Court to hold another bail hearing. On Tuesday, the district court granted bail to Cheng a second
The Thai government on Friday announced that Taiwanese would be allowed to stay in the country for up to 60 days per entry, under the Southeast Asian country’s visa-free program starting from today. Taiwan is among 93 countries included in the Thai visa-waiver program, which has been expanded from 57 countries, with the visa-exempt entry extended from 30 to 60 days. After taking office last year, Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has vowed to grant more visa waivers to foreign travelers as part of efforts to stimulate tourism. The expanded visa-waiver program was on Friday signed by Thai Minister of the Interior Anutin
PEACE AND SECURITY: China’s military ambitions present ‘the greatest strategic challenge to Japan and the world, Japan’s annual defense white paper said yesterday Japan yesterday warned that China risked escalating tensions with Taiwan with an increase in military exercises that appeared aimed in part at readying Beijing’s forces for a possible invasion. Japan’s annual assessment of security threats, including those posed by China, North Korea and Russia, comes as Taiwan closely monitors Chinese People’s Liberation Army air and sea exercises, including one with the Shandong aircraft carrier in the Pacific Ocean. The drills are the latest in a series including maneuvers in the Taiwan Strait last year that a senior US general said would be key to any invasion. “Because of that increase in military activity,
HAN KUANG: The exercises, which are to run from July 22 to 26, will feature unscripted war games and a decentralized command and control structure, military officers said The armed forces would for the first time test new rules of engagement (ROE) at this month’s annual Han Kuang exercises, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said yesterday. The exercises, which are to run from July 22 to 26, will feature unscripted war games, and a decentralized command and control structure, military officers told a news conference in Taipei. ROE cards would be issued to select combat troops to test their ability to function without tight control, they said. The most recent edition of the rules was published last year, they said. One of the cards’ two templates identifies enemy targets that soldiers