“Taiwan will not go to war with China or lead to conflict alone, but if the other side takes military action, it will have to respond,” Defense Minister Chiu Gocheng said Thursday. This is another statement by a representative of the government of Taiwan regarding the possible start of a war with the PRC.
On Thursday, Minister Chiu attended a meeting of the Parliamentary Committee for National Defense – Legislative Council.
Chiu stressed that Taiwan will not lead to a conflict with China, but this does not mean that the Taiwanese military will stand idle “like plastic dummies.” According to him, the country will have to react to possible military actions of the opposing side. “The first battle in this case will not be the last, because only one side decides to end the war,” the Minister of Defense added.
In early October, Chiu announced that China already had the ability to attack Taiwan and that a full-scale invasion would be within PRC’s reach in 2025. He also noted that the recent numerous incursions by Chinese warplanes into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (AA) have placed Taiwanese pilots under severe pressure.
Taiwanese President Kaj Inwen made a similar statement on Sunday. – I want to say again that Taiwan is ready to contribute to the peaceful development of the situation in the region. Our position on relations in the (Taiwan) Strait remains the same: neither our goodwill nor our commitments will change. “We are calling for the maintenance of the status quo, and we will do our best to prevent a unilateral change in the current state,” she said. According to her, “we look forward to improving relations in the strait and will not act rashly, but no one should have any illusions: the Taiwanese will not succumb to pressure.”
In early October, Taiwan’s southwestern air defenses were penetrated a total of 150 times by Chinese military aircraft, including Shenyang J-16 and SU-30 fighters and Xian H-6 bombers capable of carrying nuclear warheads. Then the current record of such incursions was broken, when 56 Chinese military aircraft were delivered to Taiwan’s air defense in one day. The situation has improved in recent days, with the most recent violation occurring on Sunday when three Chinese aircraft entered the area.