Chinese Ministry of National Defense spokesperson Chen Xi answered a reporter's question on October 11 about Lai Ching-te's October 10 'Double Ten' speech. The ministry said Taiwan being part of China is the true status quo across the Strait.
According to the Q&A published by CNR and the Beijing News, among others, the reporter said Lai had claimed in his National Day speech that the mainland was trying to change the status quo with military pressure, and had called for higher defense spending and stronger 'whole-of-society defense resilience.' The reporter then asked for the ministry's position. Double Ten refers to October 10, the National Day of the Republic of China.
광고 문의 · 300×250Chen Xi said there is only one China in the world and Taiwan is part of it, calling this the true status quo of the Taiwan Strait. The spokesperson said Lai clings to a 'Taiwan independence' stance, distorts facts, exaggerates a 'mainland military threat,' stirs cross-strait confrontation and relies on outside forces to seek independence.
The spokesperson said the DPP authorities, for partisan interests, push 'all-people defense' and a 'whole-island battlefield,' which the spokesperson said ties Taiwan's people to the independence cause, damages stability and sacrifices Taiwan's future. This is the ministry's official position, while the Taiwan authorities have consistently disagreed with such assessments.
On PLA training around Taiwan, the ministry said it is a normal activity meant to deter independence provocations and external interference and to protect the safety and well-being of Taiwan residents. The spokesperson stressed that 'Taiwan independence' and peace cannot coexist, that reunification is the trend, and urged Taiwan compatriots to recognize the danger of Lai's stance and oppose independence and external interference.
The Taiwan side's view can be gauged from the speech as summarized in the question. According to the reporter, Lai called in the speech for more defense spending and stronger society-wide defense resilience. Taiwan authorities have explained that such defense efforts aim to preserve the status quo, but as far as we could verify, no official Taiwan response to Chen Xi's remarks has been confirmed yet.
Third perspective: In our view, the two sides define the same word, 'status quo,' differently. Beijing treats one China as its core, while Taipei emphasizes preserving the actual condition across the Strait. Overseas Chinese readers in Korea often have relatives and friends on both sides, and when military language is flying, it matters all the more to read statements with attention to who is saying what.
