As Ukrainians defend their country from a Russian invasion, an overwhelming majority of Taiwanese responding to a Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation survey said they think Taiwan’s mandatory military service is too short.
The survey — conducted by the foundation on Monday and Tuesday last week — found that 76.8 percent of respondents aged 20 or older disapproved of Taiwan’s mandatory military service, with 75.9 percent saying that it should be lengthened to one year as a measure to shore up the country’s defenses against Chinese aggression, foundation chairman Michael You (游盈隆) told a news conference.
In Taiwan, combat units are comprised of volunteers, while men of military age complete a mandatory four-month boot camp, leaving as military reservists.
Photo: Chen Yu-fu, Taipei Times
Most respondents disagreed that the US would fight to protect Taiwan if China invades, including 26.5 percent who somewhat disagreed and 29.4 percent who strongly disagreed.
Seventy-eight percent of respondents disagreed that Taiwan’s military could deter Chinese aggression on its own, while 59.7 percent expressed concern that Taiwan might need to fight invaders alone, as Ukraine is doing.
Respondents largely supported Taipei’s participation in international trade sanctions against Russia, with 64.4 percent approving and 23.6 percent disapproving.
The survey, which collected 1,077 valid samples by landline telephone, has a confidence level of 95 percent and a margin of error of 3 percentage points.
Speaking at the news conference, former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislator Lin Cho-shui (林濁水) slammed President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) administration over “lukewarm support” for proposals to bolster conscription.
Tsai’s silence on conscription and Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng’s (邱國正) comment that he “looks favorably” on extending it fall short of the leadership being shown by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, he said.
The president and defense minister’s attitude puts them at odds with public opinion at a time when Taiwanese are ever more alert to Chinese aggression, Lin said.
Of the survey respondents 51.8 percent approved and 33.4 percent disapproved of Tsai’s performance, while 47 percent approved and 42.6 percent disapproved of Premier Su Tseng-chang’s (蘇貞昌) performance.
With an approval rating of 36.1 percent, the DPP remained the most popular political party, followed by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) at 14 percent, the Taiwan People’s Party at 13.5 percent, the New Power Party at 2.8 percent and the Taiwan Statebuilding Party at 2.5 percent.
University of Taipei industrial management and marketing professor Timothy Ting (丁庭宇), a former Taipei deputy mayor, told reporters that conscripts should serve two years and receive the same pay as active-duty soldiers.
Additional reporting by Chen Yu-fu
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