China poses the greatest threat to Taiwan’s sovereignty and democracy and is trying to divide Taiwanese society with covert operatives, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday.
China has never abandoned its ambitions to annex Taiwan, and its regime poses the greatest threats to Taiwan’s sovereignty and democracy, Lai said at an event in Taipei commemorating the 228 Incident, a 1947 uprising against the then-Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government.
Beijing has been recruiting operatives in Taiwan — including gang members, television pundits, political party members, and even retired and active military officers — to “sow division” in society and “attempt to subvert Taiwan,” Lai said, without elaborating.
Photo: Chiang Ying-ying, AP
Lai called on Taiwanese to recognize the nature of authoritarianism so they can better preserve and strengthen Taiwan’s democratic foundation.
The Ministry of National Defense (MND) yesterday said the history of World War II shows that aggression and expansion will end in failure, responding to remarks made by a Chinese Ministry of National Defense spokesperson saying that Taiwan would come into Beijing’s hands sooner or later.
The MND on Wednesday reported that China had designated an area for live-fire drills in international waters about 40 nautical miles (74km) off Kaohsiung and Pingtung County without prior notice.
Asked on Thursday about Taiwan’s annual Han Kuang military exercises this year, China’s defense ministry said Taiwan was “like a mantis trying to stop a chariot” and “sooner or later we will take you back.”
The MND in a statement said that China has been escalating its military threats in the region, destroying the “status quo” of regional stability, and has become the biggest “troublemaker” in the international community.
“This year marks the 80th anniversary of [the end of] World War II, and history has proven that any form of aggression and expansion will end in failure,” it said. “The actions of the communist military in recent years are repeating the mistakes of the invaders and pushing China toward defeat.”
Taiwan’s military is strengthening its forces to safeguard sovereignty, ensure freedom and democracy, and collaborate to maintain security and stability in the region, it added.
Separately, a US Department of State spokesperson on Thursday said that the US is closely monitoring reports of China’s sudden establishment of a live-fire exercise zone near Taiwan.
“China’s continued provocative actions around Taiwan are destabilizing and undermine peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and in the region,” the spokesperson said in a written statement in response to media queries.
The spokesperson said that the US opposes any unilateral changes to the “status quo” by either side.
“We support cross-strait dialogue, and we expect cross-strait differences to be resolved by peaceful means, free from coercion, in a manner acceptable to people on both sides of the Strait,” the spokesperson added.
STILL COMMITTED: The US opposes any forced change to the ‘status quo’ in the Strait, but also does not seek conflict, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said US President Donald Trump’s administration released US$5.3 billion in previously frozen foreign aid, including US$870 million in security exemptions for programs in Taiwan, a list of exemptions reviewed by Reuters showed. Trump ordered a 90-day pause on foreign aid shortly after taking office on Jan. 20, halting funding for everything from programs that fight starvation and deadly diseases to providing shelters for millions of displaced people across the globe. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has said that all foreign assistance must align with Trump’s “America First” priorities, issued waivers late last month on military aid to Israel and Egypt, the
France’s nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and accompanying warships were in the Philippines yesterday after holding combat drills with Philippine forces in the disputed South China Sea in a show of firepower that would likely antagonize China. The Charles de Gaulle on Friday docked at Subic Bay, a former US naval base northwest of Manila, for a break after more than two months of deployment in the Indo-Pacific region. The French carrier engaged with security allies for contingency readiness and to promote regional security, including with Philippine forces, navy ships and fighter jets. They held anti-submarine warfare drills and aerial combat training on Friday in
COMBAT READINESS: The military is reviewing weaponry, personnel resources, and mobilization and recovery forces to adjust defense strategies, the defense minister said The military has released a photograph of Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) appearing to sit beside a US general during the annual Han Kuang military exercises on Friday last week in a historic first. In the photo, Koo, who was presiding over the drills with high-level officers, appears to be sitting next to US Marine Corps Major General Jay Bargeron, the director of strategic planning and policy of the US Indo-Pacific Command, although only Bargeron’s name tag is visible in the seat as “J5 Maj General.” It is the first time the military has released a photo of an active
CHANGE OF MIND: The Chinese crew at first showed a willingness to cooperate, but later regretted that when the ship arrived at the port and refused to enter Togolese Republic-registered Chinese freighter Hong Tai (宏泰號) and its crew have been detained on suspicion of deliberately damaging a submarine cable connecting Taiwan proper and Penghu County, the Coast Guard Administration said in a statement yesterday. The case would be subject to a “national security-level investigation” by the Tainan District Prosecutors’ Office, it added. The administration said that it had been monitoring the ship since 7:10pm on Saturday when it appeared to be loitering in waters about 6 nautical miles (11km) northwest of Tainan’s Chiang Chun Fishing Port, adding that the ship’s location was about 0.5 nautical miles north of the No.
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