Would Australia go to war to support the United States in conflict with China over Taiwan – or elsewhere? The government avoids discussing the question, let alone answering it, by dismissing it as hypothetical. But it will not go away, for two reasons. First, the possibility of us going to war over Taiwan looms over the whole debate about our military preparedness and defence spending, and gives it urgency. That is because choosing to fight China alongside the US is a scenario in which Australia would find itself drawn into…
Tag: Taiwan
Malfunctions, overreactions and a steep learning curve: wargaming a Chinese attack on Taiwan
A series of war games in Taiwan has highlighted significant vulnerabilities in how the island and its supporters would respond to a Chinese annexation attempt, as well as growing questions over how much reliance can be placed on the volatile Trump administration. Last week former senior military and government officials from the US, Japan, and Taiwan convened in Taipei for a tabletop exercise, led by the Taipei School of Economics and Political Science Foundation. The event was described as the first civilian-led military simulation held in Taiwan, testing responses to…
Hong Kong police tell people not to download ‘secessionist’ mobile game
Hong Kong police have warned people against downloading a Taiwan-developed mobile game which they say is “secessionist” and could lead to arrest. The game, Reversed Front: Bonfire, allows users to “pledge allegiance” to various groups linked to locations that have been major flashpoints or targets for China including Taiwan, Hong Kong, Tibet, Uyghurs, Kazakhs and Manchuria, in order to “overthrow the communist regime” known as the “People’s Republic”. While some aspects and place names of the game’s worldview are imagined, the website says the game is “a work of NON-FICTION”…
Four ex-staff of Taiwan’s ruling party charged with spying for China
Taiwan prosecutors have charged four former staffers in the ruling Democratic Progressive party with spying for China while they worked in senior positions. The four include a former aide to Lai Ching-te, when he was vice-president and for a time during his current presidency, and a senior staffer to Joseph Wu, then foreign minister and now national security chief. They have been accused of sharing state secrets with China over a prolonged period of time, including “important and sensitive diplomatic information” that significantly harmed national security, prosecutors alleged in a…
Frequent TikTok users in Taiwan more likely to agree with pro-China narratives, study finds
Taiwanese people who spend large amounts of time on TikTok are more likely to agree with some pro-China narratives, a survey has suggested. The study, conducted by the Taiwan-based DoubleThink Lab, surveyed people across Taiwan in March, asking a series of questions about politics and democracy in Taiwan and China, and their views on unification of the two sides. It found that among the respondents, agreement with criticisms of Taiwan’s domestic issues, and with the prospect of unifying with China, rose as TikTok use increased, before dropping again among the…
World won’t forget Tiananmen Square, US and Taiwan say on 36th anniversary of massacre
The world will never forget the Tiananmen Square massacre, the US secretary of state and Taiwan president have said on the 36th anniversary of the crackdown, which China’s government still tries to erase from domestic memory. There is no official death toll but activists believe hundreds, possibly thousands, were killed by China’s People’s Liberation Army in the streets around Tiananmen Square, Beijing’s central plaza, on 4 June 1989. “Today we commemorate the bravery of the Chinese people who were killed as they tried to exercise their fundamental freedoms, as well…
Exiled pro-democracy activist on being Uyghur during Tiananmen Square protests – video
In 1989, a young Uyghur named Örkesh Dölet was a student leader in the Tiananmen Square protests. Throughout the protests, Dölet represented students in televised negotiations with Chinese Communist Party leaders. After the massacre, the 21-year-old was put on China’s list of most wanted student leaders and so he fled the country. He now lives in exile in Taiwan. ‘For every important choices I make in my life, my Uyghur-ness has always came in and played an important role,’ he says. ‘That we do the right thing, not the safe…
Trump doesn’t know how to deal with China. His cowardice only makes a war with Taiwan more likely | Simon Tisdall
The belief that bad things come in threes is an old superstition with scant basis in fact. Still, in these disordered times, it’s natural to wonder whether war in Europe and the Middle East will be followed by war in Asia. Nuclear-armed India and Pakistan, firing off insults and missiles, recently demonstrated how real that prospect is. Emboldened by its alliance with Russia, North Korea’s unpredictable rogue regime threatens almost everyone. Yet it is China’s accelerating confrontation with US-backed Taiwan that forms the most alarming panel in this gloomy Asian…
China accuses Pete Hegseth of sowing division in Asia in speech ‘filled with provocations’
China’s government has accused Pete Hegseth of trying to “sow division” in the Asia Pacific region over his speech at a Singapore defence conference where he warned China was a potentially “imminent” threat. On Saturday Hegseth said China was “credibly preparing to potentially use military force to alter the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific”, and was rehearsing for “the real deal” of invading Taiwan. “There’s no reason to sugar coat it. The threat China poses is real, and it could be imminent,” the US defence secretary said in a…
Delegation of Labour MPs arrives in Taiwan in first visit since UK election
A group of five Labour MPs is travelling to Taiwan for meetings with government officials for the first time since Labour came to power. The Labour Friends of Taiwan delegation is due to land in Taipei on Sunday morning and is expected to meet senior government officials, parliamentarians, unions, businesses and civil society groups. It includes Navendu Mishra, the Labour MP for Stockport, Paula Barker of Liverpool Wavertree, Connor Naismith of Crewe and Nantwich, Gill Furniss of Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough, and Tahir Ali of Birmingham Hall Green. The visit…