On the eve of the first anniversary of his inauguration on May 20, Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te said in an exclusive interview with the Taiwanese online program and YouTuber "Mindy Selected Reading" on the 17th: "China is a larger company, Taiwan is a smaller company. If you want to merge with my company," "You have to put forward conditions, right? It is not Taiwan that puts forward conditions, asking you to say yes or no, and also saying that you must become a part of me, and then there are no other options. This is not acceptable. The people will not accept this."
Lai Ching-te: Is there no other way but to resort to war?
Lai Ching-te pointed out that China should face up to the fact that the Republic of China exists and respect the Taiwanese people's pursuit of democracy, freedom and human rights.
Regarding cross-strait relations, Lai Ching-te asked, "Is war necessary? Are there no other solutions?" The world hopes for peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, a goal Taiwan pursues. As long as China is committed to equality and dignity, Taiwan is willing to engage in exchanges and cooperation with China, replacing confrontation with dialogue and containment with exchange, and to work together to achieve peaceful and co-prosperous cross-strait relations. He expressed his sincere hope that China would understand Taiwan's goodwill toward China over the past decades.
Lai Ching-te pointed out that Taiwan is China's largest source of foreign investment, with one to two million Taiwanese people working in China year-round. While Taiwan certainly benefits from this, China likely benefits the most, creating jobs, increasing tax revenue, and fostering its own industrial ecosystem. China must reflect on its current policy toward Taiwan, which has persisted for many years. Is this the situation China truly needs?
Lai Ching-te also noted that President Trump, the Secretary of Defense, and other US officials have recently been talking about shifting power to the Indo-Pacific to prevent the expansion of Chinese influence. China's Taiwan policy and foreign policy over the past two or three decades have resulted in this outcome. Is this truly what China wants? Is this outcome truly beneficial to China?
Lai Ching-te's metaphorical comment about cross-strait relations, comparing it to "big companies merging small companies," sparked controversy in Taiwan. On the 19th, Zhu Lilun, chairman of the opposition Kuomintang (KMT), criticized Lai Ching-te as a "selling-out president."
KMT Chairman: Lai Ching-te is the president who sells out Taiwan
Zhu Lilun pointed out that Lai Ching-te's "merger theory" suggests that conditions should be set first, but he has not yet heard any of them. Lai Ching-te's argument is to change unification to mergers and acquisitions, and whether they are well-intentioned or malicious, they are all within his vocabulary.
Zhu Lilun countered, asking, "From now on, Taiwan can no longer talk about unification, only mergers and acquisitions, and can only smear others. Is it okay for Lai Ching-te to sell out Taiwan or sell out sovereignty?" Facing the United States, he sold off TSMC and other key companies one by one; facing cross-strait issues, he first talked about mergers and acquisitions, hoping that mainland China would set the conditions. Therefore, he is a true traitor to Taiwan.
Wu Zheng, a spokesperson for the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, criticized Chu Li-lun for taking his remarks out of context, saying President Lai was accusing China of unilaterally imposing political preconditions on cross-strait interactions. Wu Zheng pointed out that President Lai has repeatedly stressed that cross-strait exchanges are not problematic as long as they are based on equality and dignity. However, China's strategy toward Taiwan is to demand that Taiwan accept the "One China Principle" and the "1992 Consensus," which stipulate that Taiwan is part of the People's Republic of China, if negotiations are to take place. This is wrong.
Lai Ching-te stressed the need to face up to the fact that the Republic of China exists
Wu Zheng also stated that President Lai's blunt statement in the interview, emphasizing that "(China) should face up to the existence of the Republic of China and respect the Taiwanese people's pursuit of freedom, democracy, and human rights," was a resolute and unyielding demand that China recognize the will of the Taiwanese people. How could this be considered selling out Taiwan? The Kuomintang, while accusing the Communist Party of wanting to annihilate the Republic of China, is constantly and joyfully sending its vice chairman and caucus leader to China to shake hands with the Communist Party. This only serves to confuse more and more people about the Kuomintang's true direction.
Kuomintang spokesperson Yang Zhiyu posted on Facebook that national sovereignty is not a commodity, nor is it a share that can be bargained over. Lai Ching-te's statement amounts to an admission that Taiwan is a candidate for "acquisition," but it simply depends on the terms. In the international political context, this could easily be interpreted as suggesting that unification is negotiable (as long as the other side offers the right conditions), or even as Taiwan willing to be absorbed for the right price. This not only completely contradicts President Lai's self-proclaimed "pragmatic approach to Taiwanese independence," but also raises serious international doubts and contradictions regarding his stance on cross-strait policy.
During questioning in the Legislative Yuan on the 19th, Kuomintang legislator Hsu Chiu-hsin expressed her unacceptability to such merger rumors. She stated that, under no circumstances should the two sides of the Taiwan Strait be considered as companies, and there is no such thing as a merger. Regardless of the conditions offered by the other side, they are unacceptable. She also stated, "We oppose unilateral annexation by the Chinese Communist Party and must support the sovereignty and subjectivity of the Republic of China." She also recalled Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's response to US President Trump during their meeting, stating, "Canada is not for sale, and will never be."
Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung, who was questioned, responded that this was a metaphor, saying, "Regardless of sovereignty, property rights, or human rights, nothing can be annexed." "China says Taiwan is part of the People's Republic of China, and that means it wants to annex us." Lin Chia-lung also stated, "China doesn't offer any conditions, so they're using their own weapons to attack their own shield." "No country can be annexed simply because it's big or small."
Huang Kuo-chang, chairman of the opposition Taiwan People's Party, also expressed his disagreement with the cross-strait merger theory on the 18th. Huang Kuo-chang said this was a highly inappropriate statement. As the president elected by 23 million people on this land, Lai Ching-te still hasn't fully grasped that even though he only received 40% of the vote, he should represent the interests of all Taiwanese people, not just his own or the Democratic Progressive Party's.
Wu Si-yao, secretary-general of the Democratic Progressive Party's Legislative Yuan caucus, emphasized on the 19th that President Lai emphasized in an interview that all interactions with China must be equal and ensure national dignity. This is what President Lai cares about most and has repeatedly emphasized. The Blue and White parties should not rush to manipulate political rhetoric or sway public opinion. Repeated misinterpretations are taking things out of context.
On Lai Ching-te's first anniversary in office, various polls examine his performance
In addition, polls have been released regarding Lai Ching-te's first anniversary in office. A poll released by Taiwan's TVBS television station showed that President Lai's approval rating has dropped to 32%, while his disapproval rating is 55%, marking the first time he has exceeded 50%. A United Daily News poll also showed that only 37% of respondents were satisfied with Lai's performance, while 53% were dissatisfied. This represents the highest disapproval rate among Taiwan's five democratically elected presidents on their first anniversary in office.
Earlier, a poll released by the Democratic Progressive Party on May 16 showed that Lai Ching-teh's satisfaction with his administration was 57.3%, his dissatisfaction was 40.2%, and his satisfaction with Premier Toh Jung-tai was 45.3%.
A KMT poll released on the 19th showed that the public gave President Lai Ching-te an average score of only 51.2 for his overall performance in office. The average performance score for the president-appointed premier was 51.4. Regarding cross-strait relations, over half (53.8%) believe they have deteriorated. Furthermore, 50.3% of the public expressed concern about a military conflict between the two sides.
Wu Siyao said that President Lai's satisfaction ratings in public opinion polls vary greatly, and the gap between different polls is huge. The ruling team will take them seriously as a reference and hope to win more recognition from the people.
