War in the Taiwan Strait would only result in a “miserable victory” because of the high cost to the winner, Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) told the legislature yesterday, while vowing that Taiwan would do everything in its power to avoid military conflict.
There are similarities between the situation in Ukraine, which has been invaded by Russia, and that of Taiwan, but there are also significant differences, he said.
“We have a geographic advantage, as the Taiwan Strait is a maritime barrier that is risky to cross,” he told the Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee.
Photo: CNA
“No one wants war. It would take much preparation and assessment to engage in war, so China should really think it through beforehand. When fighting gets started, it would be severe for everyone. From ancient wars to recent ones, there are winning sides that only result in a miserable victory because of the heavy toll,” he added.
Chiu said that his ministry’s policy is to avoid war, but to remain vigilant and be prepared for any contingencies in case conflict breaks out.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said that China would be making a mistake if it chooses military aggression against Taiwan.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
“China will pay a very heavy price,” Wu told the lawmakers.
“Because of the war in Ukraine, the world’s attention has been drawn to the security situation in the Taiwan Strait,” he said. “We are certain that China is aware of this, and it is seeing the worldwide response — that the global democratic alliance will not tolerate a country taking up arms to invade another country and undermine its sovereignty.”
National Security Bureau Director-General Chen Ming-tong (陳明通) said that China, taking advantage of the conflict in Ukraine, has heightened its political and economic pressure on Taiwan.
“This includes military threats, with China continuing its united front tactics and cognitive warfare to spread disinformation and penetrate our society. China is also engaging in cyberwarfare, stepping up hacker attacks and other tactics to intimidate us,” Chen said.
“In undertaking coordinated cyberwarfare and attacks on our Web sites, China’s purpose is to erode our national defense and digital security resources, to sow discord and internal conflict among our military and society, and to erode the public’s will to fight and defend our country,” he added.
“Our bureau is closely monitoring such Chinese campaigns in Taiwan and closely watching for any sign of hostile moves by the Chinese military,” he said.
Separately, military experts deliberated at a seminar organized by the Democratic Progressive Party on developments in Ukraine and how they affect Taiwan.
Experts agreed that the best way to deter Chinese aggression is for Taiwanese to defend their homeland.
If war breaks out, defense would be led by the armed forces, bolstered by military reservist troops, along with civilian defense networks, they said.
Asked if other nations would come to Taiwan’s aid in the event of war, Institute for National Defense and Security Research senior analyst Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲) said: “Taiwan must send a clear message to the world that we are implementing a comprehensive national defense system and will rely on ourselves, that Taiwan is not a free rider on the international community ... that our people will fight to defend Taiwan.”
Su said that fighting in Ukraine is a land war, but it would be different in Taiwan, which is surrounded by sea, posing more difficulties for China.
Taiwan also occupies a highly strategic position in the Indo-Pacific region, he added.
“Other countries will assist Taiwan in time of war, because the sea lanes around us are vital to the international community. To keep the global economy going, these lanes must be secured, given Taiwan’s pivotal role in the global supply chain, and to ensure that cargo ships and oil tankers can pass through between the Southeast Asian regions, and for Japan, South Korea and the US,” he said.
A Ministry of Foreign Affairs official yesterday said that a delegation that visited China for an APEC meeting did not receive any kind of treatment that downgraded Taiwan’s sovereignty. Department of International Organizations Director-General Jonathan Sun (孫儉元) said that he and a group of ministry officials visited Shenzhen, China, to attend the APEC Informal Senior Officials’ Meeting last month. The trip went “smoothly and safely” for all Taiwanese delegates, as the Chinese side arranged the trip in accordance with long-standing practices, Sun said at the ministry’s weekly briefing. The Taiwanese group did not encounter any political suppression, he said. Sun made the remarks when
The Taiwanese passport ranked 33rd in a global listing of passports by convenience this month, rising three places from last month’s ranking, but matching its position in January last year. The Henley Passport Index, an international ranking of passports by the number of designations its holder can travel to without a visa, showed that the Taiwan passport enables holders to travel to 139 countries and territories without a visa. Singapore’s passport was ranked the most powerful with visa-free access to 192 destinations out of 227, according to the index published on Tuesday by UK-based migration investment consultancy firm Henley and Partners. Japan’s and
BROAD AGREEMENT: The two are nearing a trade deal to reduce Taiwan’s tariff to 15% and a commitment for TSMC to build five more fabs, a ‘New York Times’ report said Taiwan and the US have reached a broad consensus on a trade deal, the Executive Yuan’s Office of Trade Negotiations said yesterday, after a report said that Washington is set to reduce Taiwan’s tariff rate to 15 percent. The New York Times on Monday reported that the two nations are nearing a trade deal to reduce Taiwan’s tariff rate to 15 percent and commit Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) to building at least five more facilities in the US. “The agreement, which has been under negotiation for months, is being legally scrubbed and could be announced this month,” the paper said,
MIXED SOURCING: While Taiwan is expanding domestic production, it also sources munitions overseas, as some, like M855 rounds, are cheaper than locally made ones Taiwan and the US plan to jointly produce 155mm artillery shells, as the munition is in high demand due to the Ukraine-Russia war and should be useful in Taiwan’s self-defense, Armaments Bureau Director-General Lieutenant General Lin Wen-hsiang (林文祥) told lawmakers in Taipei yesterday. Lin was responding to questions about Taiwan’s partnership with allies in producing munitions at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee. Given the intense demand for 155mm artillery shells in Ukraine’s defense against the Russian invasion, and in light of Taiwan’s own defensive needs, Taipei and Washington plan to jointly produce 155mm shells, said Lin,
RSS