Taiwan minister: China war a disaster regardless of outcome
18:09 JST, March 10, 2022
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — A conflict with China, which threatens to invade Taiwan, would be a disaster for all sides regardless of the outcome, the island’s defense minister said Thursday.
China has largely backed Russia in invading Ukraine, a conflict that has echoes in Beijing’s approach to Taiwan, the self-governing island democracy that it claims as Chinese territory to be annexed by force if necessary.
“Nobody wants a war,” Taiwan’s Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng told reporters. “It really has to be thoroughly thought over.”
“If you really went to war, it would be disastrous for all,” Chiu said. Taiwan’s defense establishment “watches and listens but we keep our mouths shut. We are following developments and preparing ourselves but we don’t openly discuss or debate.”
At the annual meetings of China’s rubber-stamp legislature, the National People’s Congress, and its advisory body this week in Beijing, delegates blamed foreign influence and separatism in Taiwan while increasing China’s legal and financial might to counter Taiwan support.
On Wednesday, a spokesperson for the People’s Liberation Army delegation at the NPC said, “Separatist activities and collusion with external forces are the root cause of the current tension and disturbance in the Taiwan Strait.”
Col. Wu Qian blamed Taiwan’s ruling pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party, adding that, “The more the United States and Japan make waves on the Taiwan question, the tougher actions we will take to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
Wu also defended the defense budget increase, saying China has “maintained reasonable and steady growth to tackle complex security challenges and fulfill China’s responsibility as a major country.”
Separately, a member of the advisory body to China’s ceremonial legislature proposed strengthening a 2005 secession law spelling out the grounds for an attack on Taiwan. Zhang Liangqi said new legislation was needed to target those promoting Taiwan’s formal and permanent independence from China, from which it split amid civil war in 1949.
In what it calls a warning to Taiwan independence supporters and their foreign allies, China has been staging threatening exercises and flying military planes near the island’s airspace, including on Feb. 24, the day Russia began its invasion of Ukraine.
"News Services" POPULAR ARTICLE
-
Dollar Edges Lower, Yen at 34-year Trough
-
A Strong Earthquake Shakes Taiwan, Damaging Buildings and Causing a Tsunami
-
Taiwan’s Strongest Earthquake in 25 Years Kills Seven, Traps 77 (UPDATE 2)
-
Iranian Consulate in Damascus Flattened in Suspected Israeli Air Strike
-
Japan’s Nikkei Climbs 1.5% as Investors Scoop Up Beaten-Down Stocks (Update 1)
JN ACCESS RANKING
- Japan Lags in Efforts to Gain Value from Human Resources; Govt Working to Increase Usage
- M6.0 Earthquake Hits Japan’s Tohoku Region; Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi Prefectures Observe 4 on Japanese Scale With No Risk of Tsunami
- Cherry Blossoms Draw Crowd to Tokyo’s Ueno Park; Viewing Season Kicks Off to Slow Start
- Shohei Ohtani’s Former Interpreter Ippei Mizuhara Appears in School Textbook; Publisher Considers Replacing Content
- Shinkansen Services Suspended After Man ‘Searches for Phone’ on Tracks; Disruption Affects About 14,000 Passengers