NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte mentioning China’s bullying of Taiwan and its ambition to reshape the global order has significance during a time when authoritarian states are continuously increasing their aggression, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday.
In a speech at the Carnegie Europe think tank in Brussels on Thursday, Rutte said Beijing is bullying Taiwan and would start to “nibble” at Taiwan if Russia benefits from a post-invasion peace deal with Ukraine.
He called on democratic allies to boost defense investments and also urged NATO members to increase defense spending in the face of growing military threats from Russia and China.
Photo: Screengrab from NATO News YouTube channel
“We need to be clear-eyed about China’s ambitions. China is substantially building up its forces, including its nuclear weapons, with no transparency and no limitations,” he said.
“From 200 warheads in 2020, China is expected to have more than 1,000 nuclear weapons by 2030. Its space launch investments are skyrocketing,” he added.
“China is bullying Taiwan and pursuing access to our critical infrastructures in ways that would cripple our societies,” he said.
“Russia, China, but also North Korea and Iran, are hard at work to try to weaken North America and Europe, to chip away at our freedom. They want to reshape the global order,” Rutte said.
China is heavily investing in ammunition, accelerating space capabilities and expanding its nuclear arsenal, Rutte said, adding that it is dangerous that “Russia and China are racing ahead” while NATO allies are “lagging behind.”
During a question-and-answer session, Rutte said that the result of peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia would shape China’s next step regarding Taiwan.
Ukraine must have “positional strength” in peace negotiations with Russia, otherwise, Russian President Vladimir Putin could “come out on top” and secure a deal that is awful for Ukraine, Rutte said, adding that the Russian example could encourage China to take advantage of Taiwan.
Chinese President “Xi Jinping [習近平] will be watching it, and will think: ‘Hey, what does it mean for me in terms of starting to nibble Taiwan to do other stuff in my part of the world.’ So it is crucial that whenever there is a deal, that is a good deal with all the elements in there,” he said.
In Taipei, MOFA in a press release yesterday said that Rutte’s speech is the first public speech he has made since he took office as NATO secretary-general on Oct. 1.
Rutte clearly pointed out the nature of China’s expansion and actions and its aggressive ambition toward Taiwan, the ministry said, adding that he also called for the international society to seriously face the issue of China, Russia, North Korea and Iran challenging global peace, security and order.
“At a time when authoritarian states are continuously expanding their aggressive ambitions, NATO Secretary-General Rutte’s remark has significant meaning,” the ministry said.
Facing authoritarian states strengthening their collaboration and undermining regional peace, stability and international order, Taiwan, a responsible democratic member of the international society, will continue to work with G7 countries, NATO and like-minded partners, in safeguarding peace, stability and prosperity across the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region, the ministry said.
DETERRENCE: With 1,000 indigenous Hsiung Feng II and III missiles and 400 Harpoon missiles, the nation would boast the highest anti-ship missile density in the world With Taiwan wrapping up mass production of Hsiung Feng II and III missiles by December and an influx of Harpoon missiles from the US, Taiwan would have the highest density of anti-ship missiles in the world, a source said yesterday. Taiwan is to wrap up mass production of the indigenous anti-ship missiles by the end of year, as the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology has been meeting production targets ahead of schedule, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said. Combined with the 400 Harpoon anti-ship missiles Taiwan expects to receive from the US by 2028, the nation would have
North Korea yesterday fired about 10 ballistic missiles to the sea toward Japan, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, days after Pyongyang warned of “terrible consequences” over ongoing South Korea-US military drills. Pyongyang recently dashed hopes of a diplomatic thaw with Seoul, Washington’s security ally, describing its latest peace efforts as a “clumsy, deceptive farce.” Seoul’s military detected “around 10 ballistic missiles launched from the Sunan area in North Korea toward the East Sea [Sea of Japan] at around 1:20pm,” JCS said in a statement, referring to South Korea’s name for the body of water. The missiles
‘UNWAVERING FRIENDSHIP’: A representative of a Japanese group that co-organized a memorial, said he hopes Japanese never forget Taiwan’s kindness President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday marked the 15th anniversary of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, urging continued cooperation between Taiwan and Japan on disaster prevention and humanitarian assistance. Lai wrote on social media that Taiwan and Japan have always helped each other in the aftermath of major disasters. The magnitude 9 earthquake struck northeastern Japan on March 11, 2011, triggering a massive tsunami that claimed more than 19,000 lives, according to data from Japanese authorities. Following the disaster, Taiwan donated more than US$240 million in aid, making it one of the largest contributors of financial assistance to Japan. In addition to cash donations and
MORE OPTIONS: The bill seeks to ‘harden a critical weak point’ in the Indo-Pacific region by finding ways to diversify and protect Taiwan’s energy infrastructure US Representative Pat Harrigan yesterday introduced the Taiwan Energy Security and Anti-Embargo Act of 2026, saying it would ensure “Taiwan isn’t left vulnerable to supply shocks, coercion by the Chinese Communist Party [CCP], or external geopolitical turmoil.” “Energy is leverage,” Harrigan, a Republican, was quoted as saying in a statement from his office. “Beijing knows exactly where Taiwan is weakest — and global events today, from strikes in the Middle East to threats at chokepoints like the Strait of Hormuz, underscore that energy vulnerability is national security vulnerability.” The bill would authorize the creation of a joint Taiwan-US energy security center to
RSS