Premier William Lai (賴清德) yesterday told reporters that his approach toward Taiwanese independence was pragmatic and based on three tenets.
Lai held a media roundtable in Hualien County, where reporters asked about his depiction of himself as a “political worker for Taiwanese independence.” He had once again used the term at an April 3 seminar on freedom of speech held by the Ministry of the Interior.
He said the first tenet is that Taiwan is a sovereign, independent nation and therefore does not need to declare independence, Lai said.
Photo: Lee Hsin-fang, Taipei Times
The second is that only the nation’s 23 million people have the right to decide Taiwan’s future, and the third is that building up Taiwan and making it stronger and more attractive to people so that they support it is a practical approach to Taiwanese independence, Lai said.
Working for Taiwanese independence involves safeguarding the nation’s sovereignty, protecting its freedom, democracy and human rights, and safeguarding the public’s right to decide Taiwan’s future, he added.
It also means developing the economy and creating growth so that people can live and work in peace; maintaining peaceful development and enhancing mutual understanding across the Taiwan Strait; and working with Japan, South Korea and the US to ensure security in the Asia-Pacific region, he said.
While Lai has consistently emphasized his role as a “Taiwanese independence worker,” it has taken different tones over the past year.
At the April 3 seminar, Lai recalled saying during his first administrative report to the Legislative Yuan as premier in September last year that he was a “Taiwanese independence worker,” but added: “I did not say I advocate Taiwanese independence.”
However, in that report on Sept. 26, Lai told lawmakers that when he was Tainan mayor, he had told the city council that he was a “political worker who advocates Taiwanese independence” and that “this will not change, no matter what position I am in.”
In June last year, while still mayor, Lai said he felt an “affinity toward China as much as he loves Taiwan,” and argued at the legislative hearing in September that this did not contradict his stance on Taiwanese independence.
Chinese media reported that live-fire exercises in the Taiwan Strait scheduled for Wendesday by the People’s Liberation Army on Wednesday would serve as a warning after Lai’s pro-independence statements.
However, Lai yesterday said that his support for Taiwanese independence started in the 1990s and his political beliefs are well known.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source