New Party legislator-at-large nominee Chiu Yi (邱毅) has been called a “traitor” on social media after appearing on Chinese television twice over the past week discussing Taiwan’s military defense systems.
Appearing on China Central Television (CCTV) political talk show The Two Sides of the Strait (海峽兩岸), Chiu discussed the navy’s Kao Hsiung LST-542-class tank landing ship, its missile and radar systems, as well as the military’s missile deployments in Taipei.
Speaking on the program on Friday, Chiu said that the Military Police Command’s deployment in October of Kestrel missiles at key government buildings in Taipei was ordered by President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) out of fear of a “decapitation strike” by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
Photo: screen grab by Chung Li-hua, Taipei Times
Government reports calling the Kestrel missiles “anti-tank missiles” were an exaggeration, Chiu said.
The Kestrel would be incapable of piercing the armor of China’s Type 98 and Type 99 tanks, he said.
However, the missiles — which were developed by the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology — would be effective against light tanks or armored vehicles, he said.
While reports said the missiles would help defend government institutions, they were intended to protect only the president, and would be used for the defense of the Presidential Office Building and Tsai’s official residence, he said.
This is further evidenced by the formation of the Quick Reaction Company at the 202nd Military Police Command Headquarters in Taipei, the commander of which is a woman, Chiu said.
Appearing on the program again on Sunday, Chiu said that while the Kao Hsiung has a phased array radar system and a vertical launching system — which are standard equipment on destroyers worldwide — the systems aboard the Kao Hsiung are outdated.
Taiwanese media have reported on close US-Taiwan relations, with Washington helping Taipei with its indigenous shipbuilding program and providing technological assistance, which has become a bragging point for Tsai, Chiu said.
Tsai has been imploring the public to stand united against China and assuring them that the Taiwanese military can resist a PLA invasion, he said.
Both remarks are merely campaign promises ahead of the Jan. 11 elections, Chiu added.
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday said that Chiu’s actions should be “strongly discouraged” and advised the public against discussing or speculating about military deployments or adjustments, which the nation’s security depends on.
The public should keep in mind that the Chinese Communist Party has never renounced the use of force against Taiwan, it said.
The ministry has “absolute confidence” that it can protect the nation, it added.
Additional reporting by Aaron Tu
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
The National Development Council (NDC) yesterday unveiled details of new regulations that ease restrictions on foreigners working or living in Taiwan, as part of a bid to attract skilled workers from abroad. The regulations, which could go into effect in the first quarter of next year, stem from amendments to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) passed by lawmakers on Aug. 29. Students categorized as “overseas compatriots” would be allowed to stay and work in Taiwan in the two years after their graduation without obtaining additional permits, doing away with the evaluation process that is currently required,
IMPORTANT BACKER: China seeks to expel US influence from the Indo-Pacific region and supplant Washington as the global leader, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said China is preparing for war to seize Taiwan, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said in Washington on Friday, warning that Taiwan’s fall would trigger a regional “domino effect” endangering US security. In a speech titled “Maintaining the Peaceful and Stable Status Quo Across the Taiwan Strait is in Line with the Shared Interests of Taiwan and the United States,” Chiu said Taiwan’s strategic importance is “closely tied” to US interests. Geopolitically, Taiwan sits in a “core position” in the first island chain — an arc stretching from Japan, through Taiwan and the Philippines, to Borneo, which is shared by
RSS