Taiwan Premier Su Tseng-chang says that China should focus on the global pandemic, rather than on its military. The premier’s comments came Monday in response to a question from the media.
Su said, “We’ve seen China continually send military planes and ships to circle Taiwan, disrupting regional peace and stability, and we find that very regrettable. We hope that China can put its national efforts into taking care of its people and relieving the pandemic, rather than on military armaments. Taiwan is well prepared to take care of its people.”
The US Department of Defense recently reported on China’s efforts to increase its missile power. The department said that in 2019, China had increased its missiles by nearly a third from the previous year, to 2,740 land-launched ballistic missiles and cruise missiles.
Su also responded to questions about a newly released book by former US National Security Advisor John Bolton, called “In the Room Where it Happened.” In his memoirs, Bolton talks about how US President Donald Trump had abandoned the Kurds in Syria. He also wrote that Taiwan topped the list of places that Trump could abandon next.
In response, Su spoke about how Taiwan-US ties had improved during Tsai’s term in office. He said that the two sides were on the same page when it came to maintaining regional peace.
Meanwhile, Su also responded to media reports that China is planning to hold military exercises to simulate the capture of Taiwan’s Dongsha Islands. The premier spoke about how Taiwan has sent marines to protect the islands. He said that President Tsai Ing-wen has repeatedly declared that Taiwan will not give up sovereignty over even one inch of the nation’s territory.