If China wishes to become the world’s leading power, it should learn from the US and make itself an appealing dreamland, rather than a police state that incites conflict around the world.
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army on Friday sent an astonishing 20 aircraft into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone, with some even crossing the zone in the southeast.
Local media interpreted the flights as Beijing’s angry response to a memorandum of understanding Taipei and Washington signed on Thursday to establish a joint coast guard working group that aims to promote maritime security and cooperation.
Regarding the memorandum, China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) spokeswoman Zhu Fenglian (朱鳳蓮) said that the Democratic Progressive Party administration’s reliance on the US in its quest for independence would push Taiwan into “disaster.”
While the statement is not innovative in any sense, it sends the message that it is the Chinese leadership who would bring disaster to Taiwan. The threat is more abominable when Taiwanese — or, in Beijing’s words, “compatriots” in Taiwan — are grieving over the loss of an air force pilot and the military is searching for another pilot missing after two jets crashed on Monday.
Meanwhile, Chinese social media users are pressuring celebrities to pledge their loyalty to Beijing, after several Western fashion and sports brands said that they would stop using cotton from Xinjiang over allegations of forced labor in the western Chinese region. Several Taiwanese entertainers who have shifted their focus to the Chinese market have since voiced support for “Xinjiang cotton” and terminated contracts with the brands.
It is not the first time that Taiwanese celebrities have been pressured to endorse Beijing’s political agenda. Under commercial considerations, their actions are to a certain degree understandable, just like the actions of many countries that have shifted their diplomatic allegiance from Taipei to Beijing.
However, the pressure campaign on celebrities demonstrates that, despite its ostensible opening, Beijing still lives in a feudalistic dream world.
Acting like an insecure adolescent, Beijing flexes its muscles, aiming to send a message to the world that it is no longer the China of the Qing Dynasty bullied by the Eight-Nation Alliance and to its citizens that they are protected by an invincible leadership.
Most of China’s actions in the diplomatic realm are driven by the desire to overcome a sense of humiliation and to recover national self-esteem. Beijing’s retaliatory sanctions on foreign officials and entities who commented on its human rights abuses can be viewed as attempt to redress an inferior performance during US-China talks in Alaska last week.
When Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in 2012 coined the term “China dream,” he set the goals to rejuvenate the nation and bring happiness. During a meeting with then-US president Barack Obama in California in 2013, Xi said that the China dream is about peace, development and cooperation, and would be a win-win situation for both countries, as it is connected to the American dream.
Nearly a decade later, Xi has proven that his words should be read in an Orwellian twist of sense and that his China dream is about threats and suppression.
It is not impossible that China might one day realize its dream to become the world’s leading power, and Taiwan might even benefit.
However, before it can come closer to its goals, it should realize that people around the world, regardless of race, gender, or national or ethnic identity, strive for prosperity and dignity, not disasters and nightmares.
On Sunday, 13 new urgent care centers (UCC) officially began operations across the six special municipalities. The purpose of the centers — which are open from 8am to midnight on Sundays and national holidays — is to reduce congestion in hospital emergency rooms, especially during the nine-day Lunar New Year holiday next year. It remains to be seen how effective these centers would be. For one, it is difficult for people to judge for themselves whether their condition warrants visiting a major hospital or a UCC — long-term public education and health promotions are necessary. Second, many emergency departments acknowledge
US President Donald Trump’s seemingly throwaway “Taiwan is Taiwan” statement has been appearing in headlines all over the media. Although it appears to have been made in passing, the comment nevertheless reveals something about Trump’s views and his understanding of Taiwan’s situation. In line with the Taiwan Relations Act, the US and Taiwan enjoy unofficial, but close economic, cultural and national defense ties. They lack official diplomatic relations, but maintain a partnership based on shared democratic values and strategic alignment. Excluding China, Taiwan maintains a level of diplomatic relations, official or otherwise, with many nations worldwide. It can be said that
Victory in conflict requires mastery of two “balances”: First, the balance of power, and second, the balance of error, or making sure that you do not make the most mistakes, thus helping your enemy’s victory. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has made a decisive and potentially fatal error by making an enemy of the Jewish Nation, centered today in the State of Israel but historically one of the great civilizations extending back at least 3,000 years. Mind you, no Israeli leader has ever publicly declared that “China is our enemy,” but on October 28, 2025, self-described Chinese People’s Armed Police (PAP) propaganda
Lockheed Martin on Tuesday responded to concerns over delayed shipments of F-16V Block 70 jets, saying it had added extra shifts on its production lines to accelerate progress. The Ministry of National Defense on Monday said that delivery of all 66 F-16V Block 70 jets — originally expected by the end of next year — would be pushed back due to production line relocations and global supply chain disruptions. Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) said that Taiwan and the US are working to resolve the delays, adding that 50 of the aircraft are in production, with 10 scheduled for flight
RSS