Thu, Oct 12, 2023 page3

• Tsai’s National Day speech intended as a gesture of goodwill, expert says

  • Staff writer, with CNA
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  President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) National Day address, in which she called for “peaceful coexistence” with Beijing, was intended as a gesture of goodwill, cross-strait relations expert Chang Wu-ueh (張五岳) told the Central News Agency on Tuesday.

  Tsai made the address, her last before leaving office in May next year after two four-year terms, at a ceremony in Taipei on Tuesday morning to mark Double Ten National Day.

  Tsai’s speech focused on the government’s achievements, including legalizing same-sex marriage, pension reform and maintaining economic growth during the COVID-19 pandemic, but she also touched on cross-strait relations.

  

  President Tsai Ing-wen, middle, and Lai Ching-te, vice president, right, wave on the stage during the National Day celebration in Taipei, Taiwan, on Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2023. Tsai said maintaining the status quo is critical to seeking a peaceful coexistence with China as she delivered her last National Day speech before voters choose her successor in January.

  Photo: Bloomberg

  While noting that Taipei’s relations with Beijing have seen “drastic changes” over the past seven years, Tsai said her administration had “kept its promises and maintained the ‘status quo.’”

  Taiwan is willing to “develop with the Beijing authorities a mutually acceptable foundation for interaction and a path to peaceful coexistence,” Tsai said, adding that “peace is the only option.”

  Speaking with CNA later the same day, Chang, who teaches at Tamkang University, said Tsai’s address expressed goodwill and a sense of anticipation at engaging in dialogue with Beijing to resolve their differences.

  Tsai’s remarks are consistent with her past stance on cross-strait relations, Chang said, adding that the president had taken the occasion to reiterate that position not only to the Taiwanese public, but also the international community.

  However, it is unlikely her remarks would elicit a positive response from China, nor is Beijing likely to change its attitude toward Taiwan, he said.

  Beijing has a different perspective on cross-strait relations, which has been complicated by US-China competition and Taiwan’s presidential and legislative elections in January next year, he added.

  Tsai also talked about her administration’s achievement in expanding Taiwan’s links with the international community, mentioning in particular the signing of a trade agreement with the US, as well as the “unwavering” friendship between Taiwan and Japan.

  “The strength of international support for [Taiwan] has reached an unprecedented high,” she said, adding that Taiwan has become “the most reliable [and] effective” partner in global supply chains and democratic development.

  Chiou Jiunn-rong (邱俊榮), an economics professor at National Central University, said enhancing Taiwan’s global links was a highlight of what the Tsai government has accomplished over the past seven years.

  While changing global circumstances should also be taken into account, the achievements, such as signing a trade agreement with Washington and improving trade relations with Europe, were “unimaginable” for past governments, Chiou said.

  Chiou was referring to an agreement inked in June as part of the US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st-Century Trade.

  Max Lin (林子立), a political science professor at Tunghai University, shared similar views, saying that Tsai has outperformed her predecessors in improving Taiwan’s international relationships.

  While Taiwan has gained a higher visibility and become strategically important in the international community, cross-strait relations have changed from cooperation to confrontation, Lin said.

  At the same time, the Tsai administration has also faced domestic challenges such as high housing prices, growing income inequality and a lack of energy self-sufficiency, Lin added.
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