Taiwan’s Ruling Party Presidential Candidate Accuses China of Election Tampering
China is tampering with Taiwan’s election through “military threats, economic coercion, cognitive warfare [and] misinformation,” candidate and current Taiwanese Vice President William Lai of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) told reporters today ahead of Saturday’s presidential and parliamentary vote (Nikkei)
Last week, Taiwanese authorities detained one of the candidates in the parliamentary election on charges of taking campaign money from the Chinese Communist Party, while today, a Chinese satellite launch prompted air alerts in Taiwan (FT)
Beijing has called the DPP’s interference allegations “dirty tricks” to win election support and has framed the election as a choice between war and peace (Reuters)
Report: Xi’s Military Purge Linked to Corruption, War Readiness Concerns
U.S. intelligence suggests Chinese President Xi Jinping’s firings of senior military officials in recent months are due to corruption that hampered the country’s war capabilities, as unnamed sources familiar with the intelligence cited several acts of graft, including missiles allegedly being filled with water instead of fuel; the corruption has decreased Xi’s likelihood to carry out major military action in the coming years, U.S. officials reportedly believe (Bloomberg)
Taiwan Accuses China of Coercion, Election Interference After Beijing Raises Tariffs on Some Goods
Ahead of Taiwan’s elections on January 13, China ended tariff cuts on some chemical goods imports, saying that Taiwan violated a trade agreement; Taipei’s government has accused Beijing of trying to interfere in the vote and said the suspension was not in line with international norms (Reuters)
Taiwanese Intelligence: China Held Meeting to Coordinate Efforts to Interfere in Taiwan’s Election
Taiwanese leaders have warned that China is trying to boost support for pro-China candidates ahead of the country’s January 13 presidential and legislative election (Reuters)
Meanwhile, Taiwan’s defense ministry said twelve Chinese military aircraft crossed the Taiwan Strait median line and reported detecting a balloon and naval vessels approaching the island (Al Jazeera)
China Says It Shadowed U.S. Navy Spy Plane Over Taiwan Strait
While China called it a provocative move by the United States, U.S. Navy officials said the plane traveled through international airspace (CBS)
United States Will Arm Pacific Submarines With Tomahawk Missiles
The capability will enable submarines to attack ships as part of plans to counter Chinese military capabilities, especially in the area around Taiwan, a U.S. naval official said (Bloomberg)
Taiwan’s Ruling Party Presidential Candidate Picks Envoy to U.S. As Running Mate
Ruling party candidate and presidential frontrunner Lai Ching-te chose Hsiao Bi-khim, Taiwan’s top envoy to the United States, as nominee for vice president; Hsiao is the first woman to serve as Taiwan’s top envoy to Washington (Nikkei)
China Resumes Military Activity Near Taiwan After APEC
Taiwan said nine Chinese aircraft crossed the Taiwan Strait median line during joint combat readiness patrols with Chinese warships after a lull in activity during the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, which Chinese President Xi Jinping attended (Reuters)
Biden, Xi Discuss Taiwan and Agree on Direct Communication
Discussions yesterday between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the APEC summit in California included a lengthy exchange over Taiwan in which Xi reiterated China’s intent for reunification but stopped short of mentioning the potential use of force (NYT)
Biden, meanwhile, emphasized that Washington’s “one China policy” has not changed and called for restraint in Chinese military activity in and around the Taiwan Strait (White House)
Biden said the meeting restored “direct, open, clear” communication, and Xi said the two countries are “fully capable of rising above differences” (FT;NYT)
Taiwan, UK Sign Framework Agreement on Trade
The deal is the first of its kind between Taiwan and a European country and commits Taiwan and the United Kingdom to future talks on clean energy, digital trade, and investment (Guardian)
Both Taipei and London said they hope it can be a model for deals that other countries can make with Taiwan, while China told the United Kingdom to stop enhancing its ties with Taiwan (Reuters)
Japan Scales Back Military Buildup Amid Drop in Yen Value
Japan’s plans for a military buildup total some $320 billion, aimed at helping to counter a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan (Reuters)
China Continues Campaign of Military Intimidation Against Taiwan
Taiwan scrambled its jets as forty-three Chinese aircraft and seven ships neared the island, with many crossing the median line that Beijing historically respected as an informal boundary but has repeatedly crossed in the last year (AP)
Taiwanese Presidential Frontrunner Accuses China of Pressuring Companies Ahead of Election
Democratic Progressive Party candidate Lai Ching-te decried what he called Beijing’s efforts to force Taiwanese companies like Foxconn to take sides and support its preferred candidates in elections (FT)
Taiwan Reports Thirteen Chinese Military Aircraft in Air Defense Zone
The “combat patrols,” which China has carried out with increasing frequency, included fighter planes and drones (Reuters)
President of Taiwan: Peace Is the “Only Option”
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen offered the remarks in a National Day address todayeven as she emphasized that Taiwan has strengthened its defenses to be able to respond to Chinese threats (AP)
Taiwan Accuses China of Attempting to Sway Its Election by Extending Trade Probe
Taiwan’s Office of Trade Negotiations said China was trying to interfere with the island’s January 2024 election by extending a probe into its trade practices by another three months until as late as one day before the vote (Reuters)
The probe could result in Beijing suspending some or all of an economic cooperation deal with Taipei (SCMP)
Taiwan to Announce List of Critical Technologies to Protect From China
The secretary-general of Taiwan’s National Security Council said the new policy will cover industries including aerospace, agriculture, and semiconductors (Nikkei)
Taiwanese Companies Helping China Develop Semiconductor Manufacturing Capabilities
Several Taiwanese technology companies are helping Chinese tech giant Huawei build the necessary infrastructure to produce semiconductors in southern China, which has been pushing to develop its own chip industry in the face of U.S. export controls (Bloomberg)
Flight patterns suggest that China’s military flew a jet under a civilian aircraft near the median line between the mainland and Taiwan, which experts warn could be practice for an undetectable aerial approach to Taiwan; China’s defense ministry declined to comment on the incident (SCMP)
China Reportedly Fomenting Suspicion of U.S. in Taiwan Ahead of Elections
A report by a Taiwanese research group found eighty-four suspected instances of China promoting the idea that the United States will abandon Taiwan in the country’s media (VOA)
Taipei Unveils First Domestically Built Submarine
President Tsai Ing-wen said the development, which many thought was impossible, is critical for Taiwan’s “defense self-sufficiency” and “asymmetric warfare” capabilities (Nikkei)
China Holding Drills to “Combat Arrogance of Separatists” in Taiwan
China has labeled President Tsai Ing-wen and her Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) “separatists,” and Taiwan now faces almost daily incursions from Chinese military vessels in its surrounding skies and waters (Al Jazeera)
Taiwan Defense Minister: China’s Military Drills “Getting Out of Hand”
Following weeks of intense Chinese military activity near the island, Taiwan’s Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng said his ministry is increasingly worried about an accidental incident sparking conflict (Reuters)
China Sends Over One Hundred Fighter Jets and Nine Navy Ships Into Taiwan Strait
Taiwan called on China to stop its “destructive” military activities; forty of the aircraft entered Taiwan’s air defense identification zone by crossing the median line, an unofficial border (WaPo)
China Announces Plan to Deepen Economic Links Between Fujian and Taiwan
The announcement came as Taiwanese authorities reported Chinese warships in the waters near the island (CNN).