Taiwan on Sunday called on China to “face reality” and respect the election results after voters ignored Beijing’s warnings and chose pro-sovereignty leader Lai Ching-de as president.
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Voters rejected repeated attempts by the Chinese government to vote for Mr. Lai, handing a comfortable victory to Mr. Lai, who China’s ruling Communist Party considers a dangerous separatist.
The Chinese government, which claims Taiwan as its own territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring it under its control, reacted to Lai’s victory by saying it had no intention of changing the “inevitable trend of China’s unification.” He said no.
Lai of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DP) has vowed to protect the island from Chinese “intimidation” and on Sunday the island’s Foreign Ministry told the Chinese government to accept the outcome.
“To put positive cross-strait exchanges back on track, we call on the authorities in Beijing to respect the election results, face reality, and abandon their oppression of Taiwan,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. .
After an election campaign marked by diplomatic pressure from the Chinese government and near-daily incursions by Chinese fighter jets, Mr. Lai on Saturday defeated his closest rival, Hou Yuxi of the Kuomintang (Kuomintang), by more than 900,000 votes. I beat it by a difference.
In his victory speech, Lai, 64, congratulated voters for refusing to be swayed by “external forces” trying to influence the election.
read moreTaiwan’s Lai Ching-de wins presidential election and vows to protect island from China threat
He said he wanted to work with China, Taiwan’s largest trading partner, to maintain peace and stability, but vowed not to be intimidated by China’s belligerent attitude.
“We are determined to protect Taiwan from continued threats and intimidation from China,” he told supporters.
According to Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense, four Chinese naval vessels were sighted in waters around the island on voting day, and one high-altitude balloon passed by.
In the days leading up to the election, China warned Taiwanese voters to make the “right choice” and warned that Lai would bring the island closer to war.
Lai is scheduled to take office on May 20th, along with his nominee for vice president, Xiao Bi-jin, a former representative of Taiwan to the United States.
Both Lai and Xiao were targets of disinformation campaigns during a campaign that experts linked to China.
The 72% turnout showed voter enthusiasm, and on Sunday, voter Tsai Jinhui said the Chinese government should care about itself.
“What China thinks is their problem. We elect our own president,” the 62-year-old taxi driver told AFP.
“I believe that one day the world will recognize Taiwan as an independent and sovereign nation.”
The US and UK congratulated Lai on his victory, and the EU welcomed the successful conduct of the election.
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World powers aspire to as much stability as possible between China and Taiwan, especially since Taiwan plays an important role in the global economy.
The Taiwan Strait is one of the world’s most important maritime trade arteries, and Taiwan itself is a major technology manufacturer, particularly the makers of critical semiconductors, the tiny chips used in everything from smartphones to missile systems.
Lai and the Democratic Progressive Party have toned down previous calls for independence, saying Taiwan is already de facto independent and protects the island’s sovereignty, so a formal declaration is not necessary.
But China still views these policies as coming too close to the communist giant’s red line, the “I-word.”
The Chinese government cut off official contact with current Democratic Progressive Party President Tsai Ing-wen in 2016 and is not expected to change its stance with Lai, leaving cross-strait relations to remain chilly for another four years. It turns out.
Bonnie Glaser, an expert on Taiwan and China issues at the German Marshall Fund in the United States, said, “The ruling party’s unprecedented third consecutive presidential victory will disappoint China, but it will lead to short-term changes in China’s unification strategy.” It is unlikely that this will encourage In the analysis part.
But the question in the coming days will be whether China decides to simply respond diplomatically and rhetorically to the election or launches into a major show of force.
A possible flashpoint would be plans for a visit by an unofficial U.S. delegation announced in the days after the election by senior officials in President Joe Biden’s administration.
Like most countries, Washington does not formally recognize Taiwan, but maintains close unofficial ties and is a major arms supplier to Taiwan.
Then-Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan in 2022 infuriated the Chinese government, prompting China’s largest-ever military exercises around Taiwan involving warships, missiles, and fighter jets.
Going forward, Mr. Lai’s presidential inauguration may be affected by the US presidential election in November, and there is a possibility that Mr. Donald Trump will return to the White House, making the outlook very different from Mr. Biden’s.
(AFP)