According to the agency Reuters Taiwan’s President Chai Jing-wen has said that Taiwan is facing more complex and serious challenges than ever before at a time of growing tensions with China.
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“The more we achieve, the more pressure we will face from China,” the president said in a speech on Taiwan’s national holiday. She described Taiwan as a country “on the forefront of democracy.”
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“We hope to settle… relations (with Beijing) and not act hastily. Let us not have the illusion that the Taiwanese people will submit to Chinese pressure, “said Chai Jing-wen.
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“No one can force Taiwan to take the path set for us by China,” she added on the anniversary of the revolution that overthrew the last Chinese imperial dynasty in 1911. Taiwan commemorates the date of October 10, when the revolution began, as its national holiday.
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Taiwan, which China claims as its territory, is subject to increasing military and political pressure from Beijing. However, the island state has long and repeatedly said that it is an independent country.
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Taiwan and mainland China are according to CNN administered separately from the civil war that occurred more than seven decades ago. However, Beijing considers Taiwan to be an integral part of its territory, even though the Chinese Communist Party has never ruled on this democratic island of about 24 million people.
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Under the rule of Chinese President Xi Jinping, who cut off official communications with Taipei five years ago after the election of the current president, tensions have risen to the highest levels in decades.
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In addition, Jinping said on Saturday that advancing Taiwan’s independence was the biggest obstacle to China’s “reunification”, but that the process “will definitely be completed.” “Taiwan’s separatism is the biggest obstacle to the reunification of the country and the most serious hidden danger to national rejuvenation,” said the Chinese president.
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“No one should underestimate the strong determination of the Chinese people, their strong will and ability to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity. The historical task of the complete unification of the homeland must be completed and it will certainly be completed, “said Si Jinping. The president added that the issue of Taiwan was an internal matter for China and “did not allow any outside interference.”
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Jinping said he favored “peaceful reunification,” but his words began to echo after months of heightened military threats, including the recent increase in violations of Taiwan’s air defense zone (ADIZ). The Chinese air force has conducted four consecutive exercises since October 1, in which it violated Taiwan’s air defense zone. Almost 150 aircraft took part. A record number of military aircraft identified the self-governing island as a threat.
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Beijing hates President Taiwan Jing-wen, who won two elections, because China says Taiwan is already an independent country that is not part of one China, the AFP agency wrote. At the same time, however, according to the agency AFP it has not taken any step towards declaring formal independence, which, as Beijing has long warned, could trigger an invasion.
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During Sunday’s speech, Chai Jing-wen reiterated its call for dialogue, stating that it supported maintaining the status quo. However, she warned that whatever happened to Taiwan would have serious regional and global consequences.
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“Every step we take will affect the future direction of our world. The future direction of our world will also affect the future of Taiwan itself, “said the President.
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Taiwan has been operating de facto independently for more than 70 years. It has its own government and democratic establishment, while the one-party regime continues in China. The island nation has had an almost independent government since the split with China, but Beijing denies and rejects the island’s sovereignty. It also seeks to isolate Taiwan internationally by preventing it from joining the United Nations and other international organizations.
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