Xiao Meiqin reiterates that maintaining the status quo and war between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait is not an option

Taiwan Democratic Progressive Party vice presidential candidate Hsiao Meiqin had her first chat with international media on November 23 after officially registering to run. Hsiao Meiqin’s performance as Taiwan’s representative in the United States was highly praised, but she was accused by the Chinese Communist Party of being a “Taiwan independence die-hard”. Xiao Meiqin reiterated that she would adhere to Taiwan’s democratic commitments and maintain the status quo across the Taiwan Strait, and emphasized that war is not an option.

Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party’s presidential and vice-presidential candidates Lai Ching-te and Hsiao Meiqin officially registered to run for office on November 21. They are called a “double-independence combination” by the Chinese Communist Party and “alone to add independence.” If elected, how the Taiwanese leaders will deal with the cross-strait situation has become the primary issue in the international media discussion on the 23rd.

Please also read: Xiao Meiqin: I hope Xi Jinping’s statement that “there is no timetable for attacking Taiwan” is sincere

Xiao Meiqin emphasizes that “war is not an option”

When asked by a Reuters reporter, Hsiao Meiqin was labeled a “Taiwan independence die-hard” by China and imposed sanctions twice. How will she communicate and dialogue with China in the future? She first said that she was not the only person on the sanctions list. Those also sanctioned by China included many international allies who firmly support democracy and human rights.

Hsiao reiterated the Taiwan authorities’ position that they hope to start dialogue and promised to uphold Taiwan’s democracy and maintain the status quo across the Taiwan Strait. She also emphasized that the DPP authorities’ stance on peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is recognized by most countries.

“As we adopt a pragmatic approach to balancing our international partnerships, I think it is equally important that the international community also makes it clear to the other side that dialogue is the only way to resolve differences, and war is not an option,” Xiao Meiqin said.

Japanese media Kyodo News mentioned that Chinese President Xi Jinping denied that China had any so-called plans to attack Taiwan in 2027 or 2035 during his recent meeting with US President Biden. Xiao Meiqin said that she certainly hopes that Xi Jinping will say that there is no timetable for attacking Taiwan. It is sincere. Taiwan also hopes to seek the greatest common denominator with the other side of the Taiwan Strait, which is to maintain the status quo of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

Xiao Meiqin quoted the late former U.S. President Ronald Reagan’s words “Trust, but verify” when negotiating with the former Soviet Union in the 1980s, emphasizing that Taiwan is willing to treat any peace-seeking parties with goodwill. opportunities, but we also need to strengthen our own strength in order to face the other side with more confidence.

On the 23rd, Hsiao Meiqin, the vice presidential candidate of Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party, expressed the hope that the international community would show China that dialogue is the only way to resolve differences and that “war is not an option.” At the same time, Taiwan’s main opposition parties, the Kuomintang and the People’s Party, are working hard to coordinate how to effectively challenge the Democratic Progressive Party in the general election. Report: pic.twitter.com/MFXkTesztj

— Voice of America Chinese (@VOAChinese) November 23, 2023

Xiao Meiqin: Thank you for the “rock-solid” partnership with the United States

As the running mate of Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate Lai Ching-te, Hsiao’s diplomacy and cross-strait discussions have attracted special attention from international public opinion. Perhaps it is because of her performance as Taiwan’s representative to the United States for three and a half years since June 2020. affim.

Xiao Meiqin pointed out that in the field of international relations, she will follow the “four pillars” proposed by Lai Ching-te, including strengthening national defense deterrence, economic security and resilience, global partnership, and principled and pragmatic cross-strait relations.

When asked by The Wall Street Journal how to deal with the different voices in the U.S. Congress, Xiao Meiqin looked back on her role in Washington and needed to constantly strike a balance between different interests. Therefore, she once cleverly mocked herself as “Battle Cats” because cats can balance themselves on a tightrope.

In addition, Hsiao Meiqin emphasized that Taiwan must obtain unanimous cross-party support in the United States and cannot allow itself to become a project of domestic political differences in the United States. Everything she did during her stay in the United States was conducted in a cross-party manner to maximize the political spectrum inside and outside Washington. support.

“In carefully balancing the international political spectrum, I would like to express my deep gratitude to all for their support as we face difficult geopolitical challenges, and a special thanks to the United States for its rock-solid partnership,” Siu said.

Talking about her experience in the United States, Xiao Meiqin emphasized that the most basic principle is that as a representative in the United States, she never intervenes in domestic American politics.

Lin Zili, associate professor of the Department of Political Science at Tunghai University in Taichung, said in an interview with Voice of America that during the tea talk on the 23rd, Xiao Meiqin clearly expressed her position to the pan-democratic alliance including the United States, Europe and Japan. On the one hand, she emphasized that she had The ability to assist Lai Qingde in serving as a bridge between Taiwan and the United States; on the other hand, it also highlights the differences between Taiwan and China in international politics.

Lin Zili said: “(Non-interference in the politics of other countries) is the most basic principle for international diplomats. Unfortunately, this is not the case in Beijing. They clearly named Xiao Meiqin and Lai Qingde as Taiwan independence advocates, and proposed substantive intervention and intervention in our democratic choices. Intimidation, this is the fundamental difference between democratic countries and communist countries.”

Taiwanese society faces challenges due to low wages and high housing prices for young people

In addition to foreign affairs and cross-strait issues, how the Chinese Communist Party’s involvement in Taiwan’s elections and social problems such as low wages and high housing prices in Taiwan affect Taiwan’s presidential election have also received attention from the international media.

As for Foxconn, the leading Taiwan-funded enterprise, which was subject to tax inspections and land use issues at the sensitive moment when founder Terry Gou announced his candidacy, Xiao Meiqin said that since Taiwan’s first direct presidential election in 1996, the CCP’s interference in the election has been seen in every election. Shadow, the pressure on Taiwanese businessmen in mainland China can also be imagined.

She pointed out that Lai Ching-te has expressed support for Taiwanese businessmen, and Taiwanese businessmen should not become victims of the CCP’s ambitions; she also emphasized that before the election, Taiwan also needs to guard against various different selection models, including various cognitive operations.

Regarding the fact that young voters may be reluctant to vote for the Democratic Progressive Party, which has been in power for eight years, because of low wages and high housing prices, Xiao Meiqin said frankly that Taiwan’s young generation is indeed facing many domestic political and social challenges, and she will learn from the experience of other countries. , to assist Lai Qingde in dealing with these key issues.

Zhuang Jiaying, associate professor of the Department of Political Science at the National University of Singapore, believes that Lai Xiaopei of the Democratic Progressive Party has not yet come up with specific explanations for the above-mentioned structural internal affairs and socio-economic issues, but similarly, the opposition camp has not explained this either. But in his opinion, Xiao Meiqin’s response is clearer than that of other competitors in terms of how to deal with the Taiwan Strait issue.

Zhuang Jiaying told Voice of America: “The Democratic Progressive Party emphasizes (first) establishing deterrence capabilities before engaging with the other side; the Kuomintang does not want to overly provoke the CCP and hopes that such goodwill will enable the other side to give Taiwan more space; the People’s Party is actually quite vague. He once emphasized Taiwan’s independence, and on the other hand said that both sides of the Taiwan Strait are one family. This kind of repetition makes it difficult to understand the direction of his policy.”

If “Lai Xiaopei” wins the presidential election in January next year, Zhuang Jiaying believes that the fact that Xiao Meiqin was sanctioned by China is more formal than substance. As long as the Chinese Communist Party is willing to talk, it will not be a problem. For example, US sanctions on Chinese officials will not affect the two sides. China Dialogue is an example.

Lin Zili, a professor at Tunghai University, believes that if “Lai Xiaopei” is elected, cross-strait relations can only maintain the status quo at best, because due to the foreseeable zero-sum game between the United States and China, Taiwan will inevitably cooperate more with the United States’ Indo-Pacific strategy.

As for Hsiao Meiqin, who will be the vice president at that time, because she is a virtual head of state with no real power in Taiwan’s political system, whether she can truly utilize her expertise in diplomacy and continue to strengthen Taiwan-US relations must depend on the amount of presidential authorization.