More than half of Chinese were against the use of force to unify with Taiwan under any circumstances, a survey conducted by the Atlanta, Georgia-based Carter Center and Emory University found.
The survey results, which were released on Wednesday in a report titled “Sovereignty, Security, & US-China Relations: Chinese Public Opinion,” showed that 55.1 percent of respondents agreed or somewhat agreed that “the Taiwan problem should not be resolved using force under any circumstances,” while 24.5 percent “strongly” or “somewhat” disagreed with the statement.
The results indicated a change in attitude after a survey published in “Assessing Public Support for (Non)Peaceful Unification with Taiwan: Evidence from a Nationwide Survey in China” in May 2023 showed that 55 percent supported full-scale war to achieve the unification of China and Taiwan, the Carter Center report said.
Photo: AP
However, most of the respondents in the latest survey said that they would agree with military action if that was the last resort.
Only 18.1 said that no military action was necessary, it showed.
“Public opinion in China reflects American views. Polling by Tsinghua University’s Center for International Security and Strategy found that 87.6 percent of Chinese people agree that the United States is actively trying to limit China’s development,” the report said.
Asked how long China should wait to resolve the issue of Taiwan, the most common response — given by 33.5 percent of respondents — was within five years, it said.
Respondents were also asked about China’s interaction with Russia, India and countries around the South China Sea.
It showed that 66.1 percent said China should support Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as it is in Beijing’s national interest, while 5.8 said it was not in China’s interest to support Russia’s operations in Ukraine.
It showed that 79.7 percent believe Beijing should maintain border claims with India, despite the risk of conflict, while 20.3 percent said a more diplomatic approach would be preferable.
Asked whether Southeast Asian countries should respect China’s sovereignty claims in the South China Sea — even though the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague has rejected Beijing’s claims — 81.1 percent said that they should, the survey showed.
The survey, which was conducted from Sept. 1 and 25 last year by survey company Dynata, interviewed 2,211 Chinese citizens aged 18 to 54.
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday lavished US President Donald Trump with praise and vows of a “golden age” of ties on his visit to Tokyo, before inking a deal with Washington aimed at securing critical minerals. Takaichi — Japan’s first female prime minister — pulled out all the stops for Trump in her opening test on the international stage and even announced that she would nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize, the White House said. Trump has become increasingly focused on the Nobel since his return to power in January and claims to have ended several conflicts around the world,
REASSURANCE: The US said Taiwan’s interests would not be harmed during the talk and that it remains steadfast in its support for the nation, the foreign minister said US President Donald Trump on Friday said he would bring up Taiwan with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) during a meeting on the sidelines of the APEC Summit in South Korea this week. “I will be talking about Taiwan [with Xi],” Trump told reporters before he departed for his trip to Asia, adding that he had “a lot of respect for Taiwan.” “We have a lot to talk about with President Xi, and he has a lot to talk about with us. I think we’ll have a good meeting,” Trump said. Taiwan has long been a contentious issue between the US and China.
GLOBAL PROJECT: Underseas cables ‘are the nervous system of democratic connectivity,’ which is under stress, Member of the European Parliament Rihards Kols said The government yesterday launched an initiative to promote global cooperation on improved security of undersea cables, following reported disruptions of such cables near Taiwan and around the world. The Management Initiative on International Undersea Cables aims to “bring together stakeholders, align standards, promote best practices and turn shared concerns into beneficial cooperation,” Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said at a seminar in Taipei. The project would be known as “RISK,” an acronym for risk mitigation, information sharing, systemic reform and knowledge building, he said at the seminar, titled “Taiwan-Europe Subsea Cable Security Cooperation Forum.” Taiwan sits at a vital junction on
RSS