In Taiwan, Chairman of the Land Commission Chen Mingtong said at an international symposium that the Chinese Communist Party continues to increase its pressure and intimidation of Taiwan, and that Taiwan’s weakness and concessions will not bring peace, but will combine with “value alliance” countries to jointly defend an important line of defense for democracy and freedom. Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg said that the U.S. commitment to Taiwan goes beyond the Taiwan Relations Act and demonstrates that U.S.-Taiwan attitudes and destinies are linked.
The Mainland Affairs Council held an international seminar on “Current Issues of Development and Governance in Mainland China,” which was videoconferenced and attended by several guests due to the neo-congressional pneumonia epidemic.
In the past year, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has continued to intensify its pressure and intimidation against Taiwan, especially the repeated provocations by communist aircraft across the centerline of the Strait, seriously undermining the status quo in the Taiwan Strait and the long-standing peaceful tacit understanding between the two sides of the Strait of non-aggression and mutual restraint, and raising regional tensions, said Chen Mingtong, chairman of the Mainland Affairs Council.
Chen Mingtong said: “Taiwan has taken the necessary defensive actions, demonstrated a high degree of strategic stability, and will not take the risk of advancing towards war, nor will it give up peace lightly. The Republic of China (ROC) is standing firm on Taiwan, which is an important geostrategic hub in the Indo-Pacific region and has been protecting the common interests of the region. In the face of the daunting challenges ahead, peace in the Taiwan Strait is closely related to regional prosperity and security, and we call on the “value alliance” countries to work together with Taiwan to defend an important line of defense for democracy and freedom.
As long as the Beijing authorities are sincere in resolving the confrontation, Taiwan is willing to promote meaningful reconciliation dialogue and discuss the way to live together peacefully under the principle of reciprocity and dignity,” Chen said, citing Tsai’s speech.
We call on the other side of the Taiwan Strait to break away from the imposed framework and to bring wisdom and creativity to bear so that cross-Strait goodwill can continue to accumulate.
Chen also mentioned that the Chinese Communist Party leaders recently emphasized at the 40th anniversary of the Shenzhen Special Administrative Region that among the “10 insistences”, such as comprehensively deepening reform and opening up to the outside world, only “democratic reform” is missing.
We believe that only if their leaders have the courage to emancipate their minds, carry out political reform, and engage in richer and more diverse democratic practices and respect for human rights, can they resolve conflicts and find a solution to coexist peacefully with their own people and the world.
Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John Steinberg said in the meeting that China has been engaging in unfair trade, military expansion, and even ignoring international law on free navigation in the East China Sea and South China Sea, threatening countries everywhere, and intensifying its crackdown on internal dissidents.
China’s new neighbors in East and South Asia are beginning to question China’s intentions and goals, Steinberg said. We have come all the way from China’s so-called peaceful rise to the current implementation of the war-wolf diplomacy,” Steinberg said.
Steinberg said that China’s current course will end up losing badly and called for China to become a responsible regional partner. As for the U.S.-Taiwan relationship, he pointed out that the destinies of Taiwan and the U.S. are linked and the two sides should cooperate on global regional and trade issues.
Steinberg said a U.S. poll indicated that U.S. attitudes toward China are at their lowest point since 1978, and are even approaching zero degrees, similar to the Cold War attitude toward the Soviet Union. The majority of Americans believe that mainland China is a threat to America’s vital interests.
According to Steinberg, the American people should care about Taiwan, not just because it is in the first island chain and has a semiconductor industry, but to see Taiwan’s universal values. The U.S. commitment to Taiwan is not just the Taiwan Relations Act, the Taipei Act, but demonstrates the U.S.-Taiwan attitude, destiny is linked.
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