Taiwan celebrates its National Day holiday against a background of Chinese threats
TAIPEI, Taiwan — Taiwan celebrated its National Day holiday Thursday against the background of threats from China, which claims the self-governing island republic as its own territory.
“We hope that China will live up to the expectations of the international community, that it will apply its influence and work with other countries toward ending Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and end conflicts in the Middle East,” Lai said. Lai took office in May, continuing the eight-year rule of the Democratic Progressive Party that rejects China’s demand that it recognize Taiwan is a part of China. The Nationalists adhere to a unification stance that recognizes both sides of the Taiwan Strait as a single nation.
At the same time, Taiwan faces economic threats from China ranging from a possible blockade of the trade-dependent island to an undermining of its financial system. China routinely states that Taiwan independence is a “dead end” and that annexation by Beijing is a historical inevitability. Prior to Lai’s speech, the U.S. said it was prepared for Chinese military exercises surrounding the National Day celebrations. A White House official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss possible future events, said Beijing had already deployed military assets around the island and could tailor its response depending on what Lai would deliver in his first National Day speech, the official said.
Lai also irked Beijing when he said the PRC is not Taiwan’s motherland. The island has never been ruled by Beijing but retains the name of the defeated regime, the ROC.