China’s increased bullying of Taiwan is boosting global support for the nation, former US deputy secretary of state Richard Armitage said.
“The more China bullies Taiwan, the more international support comes to Taiwan,” Armitage said in an interview with Voice of America on Wednesday last week.
Armitage recently visited Taiwan, during which he attended the inauguration of President William Lai (賴清德) and Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) and brought a message of bipartisan US support for Lai.
Photo courtesy of the Presidential Office
Asked how he interpreted China’s drills near Taiwan following Lai’s inauguration speech, Armitage said they were expected.
“Lai said: ‘We are open for dialogue on the basis of mutual respect and dignity,’ thereby putting Taiwan on the high road. And I think China was not expecting it,” he said.
Armitage described Taiwan’s geographic position as the “tyranny of proximity,” and said that despite China’s efforts at coercion and intimidation, more countries around the world are speaking up for Taiwan.
On the issue of defense, Armitage said that Taiwan should learn from Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s invasion by incorporating unconventional asymmetrical methods of warfare, including greater use of drones and air defense systems.
Taiwan must also increase military recruitment, which is at 80 percent, he added.
Commenting on how this could be done, Armitage said women should be encouraged to enroll and that more should be done to improve the image of military service.
“More and more Taiwan citizens have to be able to respect those who choose to serve for the defense of Taiwan,” he said.
Taiwan is also not facing the China threat alone, Armitage said.
“People who were not very interested historically, in security terms, in the Taiwan Strait have all of a sudden become very interested,” he said. “Canadians, French, Germans, British and always the US, we’re all patrolling around the area. It’s been brought about by China.”
Asked what security conflict was of the greatest importance to the US, Armitage said that while the US was heavily invested in the defense of Ukraine at the moment, Washington always keeps a global perspective.
“If you remember in 1950, our secretary of state famously said that Korea was outside the defense perimeter of the US. And what happened? Several months later, North Korea invaded,” he said. “So, I would say it’s bad business to try to put anything in an order.”
As for whether tensions in the Taiwan Strait would worsen under Lai, Armitage said that although Beijing has labeled Lai a “separatist,” many security officials in his administration were kept on from Tsai’s government — which would calm Beijing’s concerns.
SEND A MESSAGE: Sinking the amphibious assault ship, the lead warship of its class, is meant to show China the US Navy is capable of sinking their ships, an analyst said The US and allied navies plan to sink a 40,000-tonne ship at the latest Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise to simulate defeating a Chinese amphibious assault on Taiwan. This year’s RIMPAC — the 29th iteration of the world’s largest naval exercise — involves the US, 28 partners, more than 25,000 personnel, 40 warships, three submarines and more than 150 aircraft operating in and around Hawaii from yesterday to Aug. 1, the US Navy said in a press release. The major components of the event include multidomain warfare exercises in multiship surface engagements, anti-submarine warfare and multi-axis defense of a carrier strike
Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China when traveling in countries with close ties to Beijing, Taiwan Association of University Professors deputy chairman Chen Li-fu (陳俐甫) said on Friday. Chen’s comments came after China on Friday last week announced new judicial guidelines targeting Taiwanese independence advocates. Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Djibouti are among the countries where Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China, he said. The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday elevated the travel alert for China, Hong Kong and Macau to “orange” after Beijing announced its guidelines to “severely punish Taiwanese independence diehards for splitting the country and inciting secession.” Extradition treaties
The airspace around Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) is to be closed for an hour on July 25 and July 23 respectively, due to the Han Kuang military exercises, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. The annual exercise is to be held on Taiwan proper and its outlying islands from July 22 to 26. During last year’s exercise, the military conducted anti-aircraft landing drills at the Taoyuan airport for the first time, for which a one-hour no-fly ban was issued. Based on a live-fire bulletin sent out by the Maritime and Port Bureau, the nation’s
Taiwan and Thailand have signed an agreement to promote and protect bilateral investment and trade, the Executive Yuan’s Office of Trade Negotiations (OTN) said on Friday. The agreement on “Promotion and Protection of Investments” was signed by Representative to Thailand Chang Chun-fu (張俊福) and Thailand Trade and Economic Office in Taipei executive director Narong Boonsatheanwong on Thursday, the OTN said in a news release. Thailand has become the fifth trading partner to sign an investment agreement with Taiwan since 2016, following earlier agreements with the Philippines, India, Vietnam and Canada, the OTN said. The deal marks a significant milestone in the development of