This content was originally published by Radio Free Asia, and it is now licensed for reprint.
As Beijing intensified military exercises around the island on Thursday, Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te pledged to withstand any attempts by China to annex his nation and defend its political and different way of life.
In an Oct. 10 National Day speech marking the 113th anniversary of the founding of the Republic of China by the republican Kuomintang under Sun Yat-sen, Lai said his government, which fled to the beach after losing a civil war with Mao Zedong’s socialists on the Foreign island in 1949, may remain to , defend the islands , of Taiwan,  , Penghu,  , Kinmen , and , Matsu.
” My goal is to ensure that our society survives and advances, and to join the 23 million citizens of Taiwan”, Lai said. I’ll defend the pledge to oppose any annexation or invasion of our sovereignty.
While Taiwan has never been ruled by Beijing, nor formed part of the People’s Republic of China, China still considers it a Chinese state, and the People’s Liberation Army levels regular military activities around the archipelago governed by the Republic of China, Taiwan’s official title.
” Our determination … to defend our free and democratic way of life remains intact”, Lai said.
China, which has  , threatened the dying penalty , for followers of Taiwan independence, however launched a slew of military activities timed to coincide with Taiwan’s National Day events under the code-name Joint Sword-2024B.
Taiwan’s defence ministry said it had detected 27 People’s Liberation Army plane, 15 of which crossed the median range of the Taiwan Strait, nine Taiwanese military vessels and five other vessels in the Taiwan Strait between 6 a. m. on Wednesday and 6 a. m. on Thursday.
Name-checking international champ bring wife Nymphia Wind and Olympic boxing gold medal Lin Yu-ting, among other domestic skills, Lai said:” The people of Taiwan are different, and they are brave”.
Our nation’s independence
Lai’s statement came weeks after he hit back at the idea that China was Taiwan’s “motherland”, saying the 1911 Republic of China that rules the area is 113 centuries old, and could instead be seen as the “motherland” of the 75-year-old People’s Republic of China.
His remarks criticized Beijing’s policy on cross-straits connections among Japanese artists and stars, and praised China on its Oct. 1 National Day on cultural advertising, calling it” the country.”
On Thursday, he called on Beijing to work with Taiwan as an equal lover.
” Our resolve to protect our national sovereignty remains constant”, Lai said. Our” steady devotion to attempting to achieve balance, dignity, healthy and peaceful dialogue and markets between the two sides of the strait” continues.
In the event of a Chinese invasion, 67.8 % of respondents to a recent poll of the Institute for National Defense and Security Research declared they were ready to fight for Taiwan.
However, only 47.5 % were confident in the island’s defense capabilities, while more than 70 % said they expected military assistance from the United States, according to the poll, which interviewed more than 1, 200 adults with a margin of error of 2.81 %.
Beijing criticized Lai’s statement, claiming that he was “heightening conflicts in the Taiwan Strait for his greedy social interest.”
Taiwan is an unquestionable part of Chinese territory, according to Mao Ning, a spokesman for the foreign government, at a regular press conference in Beijing. The People’s Republic of China is the only legitimate body of law that represents the entire nation of China.
She continued, noting that China may continue to oppose political ties between Taiwan and the rest of the world.” China will and may achieve reunification,” she said.
Opposition Kuomintang senator Han Kuo-yu, speech of the Congressional Yuan, said on Thursday:” The Republic of China is our land, wonderful Taiwan is our house, Chinese culture is our root, democracy and freedom are our jewels”.
Han, whose Kuomintang is typically in favor of closer ties with China, said it was crucial to “let the world know that the Republic of China exists,” whether through TSMC, a global leader, Olympic athletes, or other forms of international cooperation.
Taiwan has been excluded from formal diplomatic ties with all but a handful of countries, and representatives of its remaining diplomatic partners Palau, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Belize and Tuvalu were present at Thursday’s celebrations.
Ma Yi “motherland.” His recent travels to China have been g-jeo u criticized for undermining the ruling Democratic Progressive Party government.
In a Facebook post on Thursday, Ma claimed that Lai Ching-te is pursuing independence for Taiwan and that his comments were putting Taiwan in danger.” Today I decided not to attend.
” He has become a troublemaker”! Ma wrote.
Former presidential candidate Ko Wen-je, who leads the opposition’s Taiwan People’s Party, was invited to the National Day gathering but was unable to attend because he is being held in custody while his tenure as mayor of Taipei, which lasted from 2014 to 2022, is pending a corruption investigation. Ko has denied the allegations.