Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te has vowed to defend Taiwan’s sovereignty and strengthen its national defences, following large-scale Chinese military exercises around the island and renewed reunification rhetoric from Beijing.
Speaking in a New Year’s address, Lai said Taiwan must build a “democratic defence mechanism” and urged political unity to avoid sending signals that China could exploit. He also warned that delays to a proposed US$40bn defence spending bill could weaken deterrence.
“In the face of China’s rising expansionist ambitions, the international community is watching to see whether the Taiwanese people have the resolve to defend themselves,” Lai said in his New Year’s address.
“As president, my stance has always been clear: to firmly safeguard national sovereignty, strengthen national defense and the resilience of the whole society, and comprehensively construct an effective deterrence and democratic defense mechanism.”
The speech came after China conducted two days of military drills — including live-fire exercises — simulating a blockade of Taiwan’s ports.
Meanwhile, Chinese President Xi Jinping said that “the reunification of our motherland, a trend of the times, is unstoppable,” describing cross-strait ties as based on shared kinship.
Beijing dismissed Lai’s speech as hostile, while Taiwan reiterated it remains open to dialogue if its democratic system is respected.
ℹ️ DW News
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