President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) is expected to use a forum later this month to respond to the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) latest Taiwan policy, which is expected to be announced at the party’s 19th National Congress, sources said.
Tsai will use rhetoric similar to that of her recent interview with the Central News Agency (CNA) to discuss cross-strait relations in her Double Ten National Day address tomorrow, said a source, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
However, she is likely to deliver a speech at a forum in Taipei organized by the Mainland Affairs Council and the Straits Exchange Foundation at the end of this month to respond to pronouncements made during the CCP’s National Congress, which is to be held in Beijing from Wednesday next week through Oct. 25.
In the CNA interview published on Tuesday, Tsai said she hoped the two sides of the Taiwan Strait could create a new model to handle cross-strait relations after the CCP congress.
Speculation that Beijing is planning unification by force have been fueled in recent months by what appear to be increased Chinese military activities targeting Taiwan this year, including multiple full-circle voyages around the nation by Chinese H-6K bombers and the aircraft carrier Liaoning.
The Hong Kong-based Chinese-language magazine Yazhou Zhoukan ran a cover story earlier this month on the possibility of China seeking such unification after the congress.
However, a national security official in Taipei, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said growing calls for forceful unification reflect the opinion of a handful of hawkish and hardline groups, not the mainstream voice in China.
The former director of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences’ Institute of Taiwan Studies, Zhou Zhihuai (周志懷), in July urged a “unification timetable,” but he has not mentioned the topic since, the security source said.
The council has maintained a somewhat sanguine view toward cross-strait development after the congress, despite former American Institute in Taiwan chairman Richard Bush’s prediction that China would introduce a deadline for a resolution on Taiwan during the congress.
The council believes that Beijing is likely to adhere to its previous principles and policies on cross-strait ties, continuing its united-front campaign and exertion of pressure on the nation.
A high-level government official, who also requested anonymity, said there are various predications about how cross-strait relations could evolve after the congress, and the government is monitoring the issue.
“Though it is unwise for the government to make predictions when the CCP’s national congress is just around the corner, the Tsai administration will neither be blindly optimistic nor unreasonably pessimistic,” the official said.
Beijing is unlikely to set a timetable for issues that could raise tension in the Asia-Pacific region, not even on Hong Kong matters, the official said.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest foundry service provider, yesterday said that global semiconductor revenue is projected to hit US$1.5 trillion in 2030, after the figure exceeds US$1 trillion this year, as artificial intelligence (AI) demand boosts consumption of token and compute power. “We are still at the beginning of the AI revolution, but we already see a significant impact across the whole semiconductor ecosystem,” TSMC deputy cochief operating officer Kevin Zhang (張曉強) said at the company’s annual technology symposium in Hsinchu City. “It is fair to say that in the past decade, smartphones and other mobile devices were
US-CHINA SUMMIT: MOFA welcomed US reassurance of no change in its Taiwan policy; Trump said he did not comment when Xi talked of opposing independence US President Donald Trump yesterday said he has not made a decision on whether to move forward with a major arms package for Taiwan after hearing concerns about it from Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). Trump’s comments on Taiwan came as he flew back to Washington after wrapping up critical talks in which both leaders said important progress was made in stabilizing US-China relations even as deep differences persist between the world’s two biggest powers on Iran and Taiwan. “I will make a determination,” Trump said, adding: “I’ll be making decisions. But, you know, I think the last thing we need right
TAIWAN ISSUE: US treasury secretary Scott Bessent said on the first day of meetings that ‘it wouldn’t be a US-China summit without the Taiwan issue coming up’ There were no surprises on the first day of the summit between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday, as the government reiterated that cross-strait stability is crucial to the Asia-Pacific region, as well as the world. As the two presidents met for a highly anticipated summit yesterday, Chinese state media reported that Xi warned Trump that missteps regarding Taiwan could push their two countries into “conflict.” Trump arrived in China with accolades for his host, calling Xi a “great leader” and “friend,” and extending an invitation to visit the White House
SECURITY: Taipei presses the US for arms supplies, saying the arms sales are not only a reflection of the US security commitment to Taiwan but also serve as a mutual deterrent against regional threats Taiwan is committed to preserving the cross-strait “status quo” and contributing to regional peace and stability, the Presidential Office said yesterday. “It is an undeniable fact that the Republic of China is a sovereign and independent democratic nation,” Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) reiterated, adding that Beijing has no right to claim sovereignty over Taiwan. The statements came after US President Donald Trump warned against Taiwanese independence. Trump wrapped up a state visit to Beijing on Friday, during which Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) had pressed him not to support Taiwan. Taiwan depends heavily on US security backing to deter China from carrying
RSS