Already subject to daily pressure from the Chinese fleet and air force, the island must now prepare for “retaliation”, an official threat coming from Beijing, which considers the first declaration of its president as a provocation.
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In Taiwan, the inauguration speech of new President Lai Ching-te – or William Lai – was not appreciated at all in China. We can speak of a firm, precise, even surgical approach on the part of this trained doctor. Elected to the Taiwanese presidency in January, William Lai was not afraid to put his foot in the thick of things by evoking the delicate relationship with China, his wish to work for peace, and even proposing to reopen tourist and academics with the continent.
What Beijing retained from these declarations was the speech of a “dangerous separatist”. The Chinese Taiwan Affairs Office, between the words “peace”, “trades”, “dialogue”especially heard William Lai heavily insist on the democratic and independent model that he defends: “I appeal to China to stop threatening Taiwan politically and militarily. I hope that China will agree to recognize its republic as it really is, respecting the choice of the Taiwanese people.” You only need to look at the latest map of Chinese borders to understand that the reality of Beijing is not that of Taipei: the island of Taiwan is an integral part of Chinese territory.
The Chinese regime therefore considers this speech as a provocation, which will give rise to “reprisals”, a diplomatic term which indicates that Laï has crossed a limit. The representative of the Chinese office in Taiwan speaks of “counterattack and punish” the political party of William Lai. This term of “reprisals”Beijing does not use it that often and, each time, the tension rises a notch without ever coming down again.
The last concrete reprisals date back to 2022, just after the visit of American Democrat Nancy Pelosi. At that time, she was still presiding over the House of Representatives, and this historic visit had greatly annoyed Chinese officials. In the wake of this passage, cyberattacks against institutions increased by 25%, intimidation actions by Chinese planes and ships became almost daily, an activity considered by military experts as a “new standard” in the strait. from Taiwan.