Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

Behind the military messaging

Taipei Times Editorial

The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) provided several reasons for military drills it conducted in five zones around Taiwan on Monday and yesterday.

The first was as a warning to “Taiwanese independence forces” to cease and desist. This is a consistent line from the Chinese authorities. The second was that the drills were aimed at “deterrence” of outside military intervention.

Monday’s announcement of the drills was the first time that Beijing has publicly used the second reason for conducting such drills. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leadership is clearly rattled by “external forces” apparently consolidating around an intention to intervene.

Lai urges unity on day two of PLA drills

Taipei Times

President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday urged unity as China’s latest large-scale military drills around Taiwan entered their second day, accusing Beijing of escalating regional tensions.

“The Chinese Communist Party has continued to escalate military tension in the region, which is not the behavior of a responsible world power,” he wrote on Facebook

“Maintaining peace in the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region is an international consensus, and Taiwan, as a responsible regional partner, will continue to uphold this goal,” Lai said.

Israeli move opens room for cooperation: MOFA

Taipei Times

Israel recognizes that Somaliland provides an opportunity for trilateral cooperation between Taiwan, Israel and Somaliland, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday, adding that Taipei would continue to seek more cooperative opportunities with the two nations, as well as deepen connections with like-minded partners.

Israel yesterday formally recognized Somaliland as an “independent and sovereign state,” as leaders of both sides signed a joint recognition pact that stated: “This declaration is in the spirit of the Abraham Accords.”

The Abraham Accords are a set of agreements brokered by the US that normalized diplomatic relations between Israel and several Arab nations, signed in 2020 during US President Donald Trump’s first term.

Lai urges solidarity after knife attack

Taipei Times

The Taipei metro knife attack last week was a reminder of solidarity and vigilance, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, in a call to improve Taiwan’s emergency response capabilities.

He made the remarks in his opening speech for a Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Committee workshop.

Since its first meeting in September last year, the committee has conducted multiple tabletop and field exercises to strengthen national preparedness, he said.

More Articles...