China has been escalating its military and political pressure on Taiwan for many years, but should reflect on this strategy and think about what is really in its best interest, President William Lai (賴清德) said.
Lai made the remark in a YouTube interview with Mindi World News that was broadcast on Saturday, ahead of the first anniversary of his presidential inauguration tomorrow.
The US has clearly stated that China is its biggest challenge and threat, with US President Donald Trump and US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth repeatedly saying that the US should increase its forces in the Indo-Pacific region to deter Chinese expansion, Lai said.
Photo courtesy of the Presidential Office via CNA
Lai questioned if this outcome is really in China’s best interests and suggested it reconsider its approach.
“Taiwan is a friendly and well-intentioned society; China should re-evaluate its policies,” Lai said.
Taiwan-US relations have continued to deepen since Trump took office, he said.
While Trump has criticisms of former US president Joe Biden, “his policy toward Taiwan has not changed, and has even continued to strengthen,” Lai said.
Discussing the potential of Trump issuing a “reciprocal” tariff of more than 10 percent against Taiwan, Lai said ongoing negotiations with the US are meant to prevent this from happening.
He said he must be confident in this regard, because a high tariff would greatly impact Taiwan’s economy and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.
Trump and his Cabinet have repeatedly emphasized the importance of the Indo-Pacific region, where Taiwan plays a very important role, Lai said, adding that “we are determined to achieve the best for our country.”
Over the past few decades, China’s military spending has not decreased at all, even when former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) was in office, and Beijing deploys more missiles each year, Lai of the Democratic Progressive Party said.
This shows China’s true objective: advancing its position in the Western Pacific to compete with the US and change the international world order, Lai said.
China joined the WTO with US support, and at that time the US viewed China as a partner, he said.
However, their relationship has shifted to a competitive one, with the US viewing China as a threat, he added.
China should face Taiwan’s existence and respect Taiwanese’s pursuit of democracy, liberty and human rights, he said.
Comparing China to a big company and Taiwan to a small one, Lai said that it is unreasonable for the bigger company to require the smaller one to merge with it to conduct business.
“Taiwan is a democratic society, and the citizens rule the country,” Lai said.
KMT spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu yesterday said Lai treated national sovereignty like a commodity to be bargained over by using this metaphor.
“Is Lai inviting China to propose a merger and acquisition plan?” Yang asked.
In the context of international politics, Lai’s use of the metaphor suggests that Taiwan is willing to be annexed if the right conditions are met, Yang said, adding that national sovereignty is not a commodity, nor is it like stocks that can be bargained over.
This contradicts Lai’s self-proclaimed “pragmatic Taiwan independence” stance and raises serious doubts internationally regarding his cross-strait policy, Yang said.
Additional reporting by Lin Hsin-han
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