Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

China has ’no right to represent Taiwan,’ Lai says

Taipei Times

President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday said that China has “no right to represent Taiwan,” but stressed that the nation was willing to work with Beijing on issues of mutual interest.

“The Republic of China has already put down roots in Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu,” Lai said in his first Double Ten National Day address outside the Presidential Office Building in Taipei. “And the Republic of China and the People’s Republic of China [PRC] are not subordinate to each other.”

“The People’s Republic of China has no right to represent Taiwan,” he said at the event marking the 113th National Day of the Republic of China, adding that his “mission” as president was to “ensure that our nation endures and progresses” and “resist annexation or encroachment upon our sovereignty.”

Influencers help China’s propaganda

Chang Yi-ying 張怡穎

Lately, China has been inviting Taiwanese influencers to travel to China’s Xinjiang region to make films, weaving a “beautiful Xinjiang” narrative as an antidote to the international community’s criticisms by creating a Potemkin village where nothing is awry. Such manipulations appear harmless — even compelling enough for people to go there — but peeling back the shiny veneer reveals something more insidious, something that is hard to ignore.

These films are not only meant to promote tourism, but also harbor a deeper level of political intentions. Xinjiang — a region of China continuously listed in global human rights reports — has long been notorious and rebuked internationally for the revelation of China’s policies of forced labor camps and suppression of minorities.

Manila condemns PRC attack on Vietnamese fishers

Taipei Times

The Philippines yesterday denounced China’s alleged assault of Vietnamese fishers in the South China Sea, where Manila and Beijing are also locked in violent confrontations that have led to fears of armed conflict.

Vietnam has accused “Chinese law enforcement forces” of beating the 10 fishers with iron bars and robbing them of thousands of dollars’ of fish and equipment on Sunday off the Paracel Islands (Xisha Islands, 西沙群島).

A Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson acknowledged an incident took place there, but disputed the Vietnamese version of the events.

PRC using ‘anaconda strategy’: admiral

Taipei Times

China’s authoritarian expansionism threatens not only Taiwan, but the rules-based international order, the navy said yesterday, after its top commander said in an interview that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) could blockade the nation at will.

The object of Beijing’s expansionist activities is not limited to Taiwan and its use of pressure is not confined to specific political groups or people, the navy said in a statement.

China utilizes a mixture of cognitive warfare and “gray zone” military activities to pressure Taiwan, the navy said, adding that PLA sea and air forces are compressing the nation’s defensive depth.

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