The majority of Taiwanese do not think that China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) would invade Taiwan, a poll showed yesterday, with only 25.7 percent thinking such a scenario was likely.
The Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation’s latest monthly survey found that 64.5 percent of respondents do not think such an attack is very likely.
Asked if the US was likely to send troops to help defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese attack, 47.4 percent of respondents said they were confident of such support, but 41 percent said they had doubts.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
However, only 27.1 percent think the nation’s military would be able to repel any a PLA invasion, while 65.4 percent said they were not confident.
The survey was conducted from Sunday to Tuesday last week, just before the PLA conducted a live-fire exercise in the Taiwan Strait on Wednesday.
The poll found that 86.1 percent of respondents believe such military exercises by China do not serve to improve cross-strait relations, while 3.3 percent think they do help.
The survey found that 37.4 percent of respondents support the idea of Taiwan’s independence, 25.7 percent prefer maintaining the “status quo” and 23.8 percent favor unification with China.
A little more than half of respondents, 50.3 percent, believe that President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) recent visit to Swaziland — now known as the Kingdom of Eswatini — did not help boost the nation’s international visibility, while 40.3 percent believe that it did.
The poll also found that 69.9 percent of respondents are dissatisfied with the nation’s international position and diplomatic situation, while 20.1 percent are satisfied.
In response to the statement: “Cross-strait relations are more important than diplomatic relations and to prevent provoking the Chinese Communist Party, it would be best for Taiwan to stop any efforts to boost its international position,” 65.6 percent of the respondents disagreed and 23.5 percent agreed.
Tsai’s public approval rating has dropped to 32 percent, a decline of 1.5 percentage points from a similar poll last month, and the third-lowest level since she took office on May 20, 2016, the poll found.
Her disapproval rating has climbed 2 percentage points to 49 percent since last month’s poll.
Former minister of national defense Michael Tsai (蔡明憲), who attended the foundation’s news conference on the poll results, said that the president should be more flexible in maintaining the “status quo.”
She could write a letter to the WHO and the UN secretary-general to express Taiwan’s desire and determination to join these organizations, he said.
Tsai Ing-wen could also propose a visit to the US in the wake of last month’s passage of the US’ Taiwan Travel Act, as her passiveness has been one of the reasons the public is dissatisfied with her, Michael Tsai said.
This month’s survey was conducted via telephone interviews among randomly selected adults over the age of 20. It collected 1,072 valid samples and had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.99 percentage points.
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said. Hsu made the announcement at an event on Friday evening celebrating the Central Taiwan Science Park’s 22nd anniversary. The second phase of the park’s expansion would commence with the initial construction of water detention ponds and other structures aimed at soil and water conservation, Hsu said. TSMC has officially leased the land, with the Central Taiwan Science Park having handed over the
AUKUS: The Australian Ambassador to the US said his country is working with the Pentagon and he is confident that submarine issues will be resolved Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd on Friday said that if Taiwan were to fall to China’s occupation, it would unleash China’s military capacities and capabilities more broadly. He also said his country is working with the Pentagon on the US Department of Defense’s review of the AUKUS submarine project and is confident that all issues raised will be resolved. Rudd, who served as Australian prime minister from 2007 to 2010 and for three months in 2013, made the remarks at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado and stressed the longstanding US-Australia alliance and his close relationship with the US Undersecretary
‘WORLD WAR III’: Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said the aid would inflame tensions, but her amendment was rejected 421 votes against six The US House of Representatives on Friday passed the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for fiscal 2026, which includes US$500 million for Taiwan. The bill, which totals US$831.5 billion in discretionary spending, passed in a 221-209 vote. According to the bill, the funds for Taiwan would be administered by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency and would remain available through Sept. 30, 2027, for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative. The legislation authorizes the US Secretary of Defense, with the agreement of the US Secretary of State, to use the funds to assist Taiwan in procuring defense articles and services, and military training. Republican Representative
TAIWAN IS TAIWAN: US Representative Tom Tiffany said the amendment was not controversial, as ‘Taiwan is not — nor has it ever been — part of Communist China’ The US House of Representatives on Friday passed an amendment banning the US Department of Defense from creating, buying or displaying any map that shows Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The “Honest Maps” amendment was approved in a voice vote on Friday as part of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for the 2026 fiscal year. The amendment prohibits using any funds from the act to create, buy or display maps that show Taiwan, Kinmen, Matsu, Penghu, Wuciou (烏坵), Green Island (綠島) or Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) as part of the PRC. The act includes US$831.5 billion in