Taiwan President Lai vows to ‘resist annexation’ of island

AT-3s from the Taiwanese air force’s Thunder Tigers aerobatics team perform a fly past during Taiwan’s National Day celebrations in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei on October 10, 2024. Agence France-Presse

TAIPEI — Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te vowed Thursday to “resist annexation”, as China exerts growing military and political pressure on the self-ruled island it claims as part of its territory.

China has not ruled out using force to bring the democratic island under its control, which Lai and his government oppose.

“I will also uphold the commitment to resist annexation or encroachment upon our sovereignty,” Lai said under grey skies during Taiwan’s National Day celebrations.

READ: Taiwan leader says China ‘has no right to punish’ island

Beijing has ramped up pressure on Taiwan to accept its territorial claims and relations have remained tense under Lai, who took office in May.

A senior US administration official said Wednesday that China may use the National Day celebrations “as a pretext” for military exercises.

Lai has been more outspoken than his predecessor Tsai Ing-wen in defending Taiwan’s sovereignty, angering Beijing, which calls him a “separatist”.

READ: China poised for military drills after Taiwan leader’s speech – sources

Beijing accused Lai on Tuesday of “malicious intent to escalate hostility and confrontation” after he said China was not the “motherland” of Taiwan.

“Our determination to defend our national sovereignty remains unchanged,” Lai said Thursday, in front of an audience that included Tsai and pro-independence former Taiwan president Chen Shui-bian.

“Our efforts to maintain the status quo of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait remain unchanged,” Lai said in front of the Presidential Office.

US politicians expected guests

Expected guests included three members of the US Congress, as well as representatives from some of the 12 states that still have diplomatic relations with Taiwan, including Tuvalu Prime Minister Feleti Teo.

The United States switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1979 but has remained Taiwan’s most important partner and its biggest arms supplier.

Washington opposes Taiwan independence and any attempt by China to forcibly take the island.

Thursday’s celebrations mark the 113th anniversary of the toppling of China’s Qing dynasty and the subsequent founding of the Republic of China.

The current dispute between China and Taiwan dates back to a civil war between the nationalist forces of Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Zedong’s communist fighters.

The nationalists fled to Taiwan in 1949 after they were defeated by the communists.

The Republic of China remains Taiwan’s official name.

While Taiwan has its own government, military and currency, it has never declared formal independence from mainland China.

Beijing has sought to erase Taipei from the international stage, blocking it from global forums and poaching its diplomatic allies.

Taiwan on alert

Taiwan was on alert for Chinese military drills near the island on National Day after observing “some maritime deployments”, a senior security official told AFP on Wednesday.

China maintains a near-daily military presence around Taiwan and has held three rounds of large-scale war games in the past two years, deploying aircraft and ships to encircle the island.

“Even though we have not seen significant military activity or exercises following previous 10/10 speeches, we are prepared that Beijing may choose to use this as a pretext this year,” the senior US administration official told reporters.

“We see no justification for a routine annual celebration to be used in this manner. Coercive actions like this against Taiwan and in the cross-Strait context, in our view, undermine cross-Strait stability.”

Taiwan’s defense ministry said Thursday that 27 Chinese military aircraft and nine navy vessels were detected around the island in the 24 hours to 6:00 am.

In his speech, Lai expressed hope for “healthy and orderly dialogue and exchanges” with China, and urged Beijing to use its influence to help end conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine.

Beijing severed high-level communications with Taipei in 2016 when Tsai, also a member of Lai’s Democratic Progressive Party, took power.

Lai’s “softer tone” compared to his inauguration address in May was unlikely to placate Beijing, which would be angry at his references to the Republic of China’s history, said Fang-yu Chen, assistant professor of political science at Soochow University in Taipei.

“This emphasis could provoke Beijing, as it suggests Lai is asserting control over the historical narrative,” Chen told AFP.