China calls Taiwanese leader Lai Ching-te a “war instigator”
China described Taiwanese leader Lai Ching-te as a “war instigator” on Thursday after he warned in an interview with AFP that Beijing would target countries in the region if it took control of the self-ruled island.
If China takes over Taiwan, Beijing will become “more aggressive” and will then shift its expansionist ambitions to Japan, the Philippines and other countries in the Indo-Pacific region, Lai told AFP in his first interview with a global news agency since taking office in May 2024.
On Thursday, China’s Foreign Ministry accused Lai of inciting aggression and described him as a “war instigator.”
“Lai Ching Te’s statements once again revealed his pro-independence stubbornness, which fully proves that he is obstructing peace, provoking crises and inciting war,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said at a regular press conference.
He added: “No matter what Lai Ching-ti says or does, it cannot change the historical and legal fact that Taiwan is part of China’s territory.”
China says Taiwan is part of its territory and has threatened to use force to bring the self-governing island under its control.
Taiwan has intensified its efforts to strengthen security and economic relations with Europe, the third largest market for its exports, at a time when questions have been raised about the United States’ readiness to defend the island against any Chinese attack.
In his interview with AFP, Lai called for greater defense and artificial intelligence cooperation between Taiwan and Europe.
Taipei, which makes almost all of the world’s most advanced semiconductors, will also support chip companies investing abroad, including in Europe, he said.
Concentrating chip production in Taiwan has long been seen as a protection against an attack by China and an incentive for the United States to defend it.
In response, the Chinese Foreign Ministry insisted that efforts to strengthen cooperation between Taiwan and Europe would be futile as a means of defending the island.
“Seeking independence by relying on foreign support and using force to reject reunification is sheer foolishness and doomed to failure,” Lin told reporters.
While Taiwan has spent billions of dollars modernizing its military in the past decade, it remains under pressure from Washington to do more in this area — and for its semiconductor manufacturers to increase production capacity in the United States.
