The government must prioritize national identity and security over the economy, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (
Hsieh said he would establish a framework promoting peace and stability with China and would strengthen relations with Japan if elected.
Hsieh, who is in Japan on a four-day visit, said that national identity and the economy have become key election issues, but the DPP is focusing on sovereignty because it is a prerequisite for ensuring political and social freedoms, without which economic growth is meaningless.
"Some people believe Taiwan is like Hong Kong and that its only problem is the economy. But that's wrong," he said.
Hsieh made the remarks in a speech at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan in Tokyo yesterday morning.
Hsieh said China poses the biggest threat to the nation's security because it has nearly 1,000 missiles targeting Taiwan.
In addition, Beijing is also waging legislative, psychological and IT wars against Taiwan and isolating it from the international community, he said.
Hsieh said that although some governments had called Taiwan a "troublemaker" for attempting to join international organizations, the nation must continue its campaign to connect itself to the world and protect its interests.
Taiwan needs to look out for itself, boost its defensive weaponry and maintain an annual defense budget higher than 3 percent of GDP, Hsieh said.
The government must push for recognition by other countries -- and by Japan and the US in particular, as they share common interests and close historic ties with Taiwan, he said.
Although Taipei and Washington have had their share of differences over the past few years, Hsieh said he would make every effort to increase mutual trust with the US if elected.
He said he would work to build a framework of peace and stability that would constitute a win-win situation for China and Taiwan.
Cross-strait relations must be based on two principles, Hsieh said, "co-existence and survival."
Taiwan should use power wisely and exercise a positive influence on other countries, Hsieh said, adding that the nation should progress from the benefactor of an "economic miracle" and "political miracle" to a "miracle maker."
"Taiwan has a lot to offer the world," he said.
On the nation's ties with Japan, Hsieh proposed increasing cooperation in the areas of defense, culture, economy, NGOs and the environment.
On the nation's bid to join the UN, Hsieh said the nation needed strengthen Taiwanese consciousness, adding that national security would be endangered by weak national identity.
The campaign to join the UN under the name "Taiwan" is an effective way to strengthen national identity and thus national security, he said.
It is not Taiwan's desire to participate in the international community that risks destabilizing the region, but rather the nation's exclusion from it, he said.
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