Important government officials from the United States (US) and Australia have, one after the other, been sounding the alarm regarding a situation in the Taiwan Strait. Several foreign media outlets have also written similar analyses. Even Republic of China (ROC) Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu has stated that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) authorities are currently preparing to wage a “Final Assault” against Taiwan. In response, the Kuomintang (KMT) requested today that President Tsai Ing-wen immediately elucidate the ROC government’s position and strategies to the Taiwanese people and the international community.

The KMT pointed out that in March of this year, then US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Philip Davidson stated that “Taiwan is clearly one of [the CCP’s] ambitions before [2050]. And I think the threat is manifest during this decade, in fact in the next six years.” Not long afterwards during the same month, US Indo-Pacific Commander Nominee Admiral John Aquilino then stated that “this problem is much closer to us than most think.” Aquilino then concurred with former White House National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster’s assessment that Taiwan is the CCP authorities’ next major target. The KMT also pointed out that late last year, former Australian Defence Minister Linda Reynolds expressed concern over the daily nerve-wracking military encounters over the Taiwan Strait. Last month, current Australian Defense Minister Peter Dutton then stated that the eruption of military conflict over the Taiwan Strait “should not be discounted.”

The KMT stated that the open warnings from US and Australian officials, in addition to similar observations by The Economist and a few foreign research organizations, not only gravely affect Taiwan’s stable and positive international image, but worse, also affect the international community’s confidence towards investing in Taiwan and the Taiwanese people.

The KMT believed that the government’s response towards the current situation in the Taiwan Strait cannot be easily dismissed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ simple statement, “We are happy to see that recently, many international leaders and high-level officials have attached importance to the situation in the Taiwan Strait and its regional security, and we are solemnly and deeply concerned by any provocative actions that destroy the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait.” Worse, we should not be seeing the self-aggrandizing magniloquence of ROC Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu, who said, “Taiwan happens to be on the frontline of China’s expansion of its authoritarian order … we will defend ourselves to the very end.”

Lastly, the KMT believed that President Tsai Ing-wen should not merely post on her Facebook page, spewing empty words about how the people should unite and that the government is capable of managing risk and establishing a security barrier for Taiwan. The Democratic Progressive Party government should, under the leadership of President Tsai, promptly and honestly elucidate the current situation and the government’s countermeasures regarding conflict management in the Taiwan Strait to the Taiwanese people and the international community.