'Peace-loving' Lai is steering Taiwan towards peril

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Once again, Taiwan regional leader Lai Ching-te has played the "peace" card for his separatist ambition.

"Taiwan must be prepared for danger in times of peace. It must keep increasing the 'national defense' budget to strengthen its defense capabilities in order to show the determination to defend the 'country,'" Lai blatantly said in his New Year speech on Wednesday.

Before shouting "peace," Lai should be clear about one single fact: there is only one China, and Taiwan is a part of China. This means the Chinese government is entitled to take all necessary measures, including military activities, to safeguard its territorial integrity and core interests.

If Lai is sincere in maintaining peace and stability, giving up separatist ambitions is the first step. But sadly, this is unlikely for Lai as a "pragmatic worker for Taiwan independence." From discrediting the Chinese mainland as an "authoritarian regime" to deliberately "stopping over" in the U.S. territories of Hawaii and Guam, Lai has been straining every nerve to provoke tensions in the Taiwan Strait over the past year. As the Taiwan people wish for peace and development on New Year's Day, Lai, again, did not miss the opportunity in his speech to play the "peace" card for his political ambitions.

The more the Lai-led Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) provokes, the more perilous the situation of the Taiwan Strait develops. Given the huge gap of military strength between the two sides of the strait, increasing the so-called "national defense budget" will not make Taiwan safer, but stopping provocations over the one-China principle will.

Speaking at the press conference following his speech, Lai also accused the Chinese mainland of restricting tourists visiting or students studying on the island, while similar bans do not apply to Taiwan people going to the mainland. "Is this really showing goodwill towards Taiwan?" Lai said on Wednesday, as Lai believed Chinese citizens can freely travel to places including the United States and Japan, but has controls when it comes to the Taiwan region.

Such allegations are unfounded.

The mainland has been consistently creating more platforms and opportunities for mutual learning, interaction and connection between people across the Taiwan Strait. For instance, a delegation of 40 students and teachers from mainland universities, including Tsinghua University, Peking University and Fudan University, visited historical sites, scenic spots, universities and other cultural venues in Taiwan during a trip from November 27 to December 5, according to the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office.

In addition, Fujian Province residents' travel to Kinmen and Matsu islands was resumed in 2024. Official statistics show that as of October 31, mainland immigration authorities had processed 58,735 travel permit applications for travel to Kinmen and Matsu.

Against Lai's baseless accusations, these figures are strong evidence of the mainland's determination in promoting cross-strait people-to-people exchanges. Despite provocations by some separatist forces, the mainland has continued to create better conditions and services for cross-strait exchanges. The DPP, in contrast, still maintains a Level-Orange alert for travels to the mainland.

"We warmly welcome and support the participation of our compatriots from Taiwan in cross-strait cultural and tourism exchanges and cooperation, and we welcome more young people from the island to personally experience the charm of fine traditional Chinese culture on the mainland," Chen Binhua, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council said in October.

Seizing every opportunity to discredit the mainland, Lai's real purpose is not for peace or prosperity in Taiwan. Rather, Lai as a politician has been adept at using his "political wisdom" for separatist ambitions – packaging himself as a guardian for peace and people's livelihoods has turned out to be the most effective way.

Lai as a "peace-loving" leader is instead acting against peace. If Lai is sincere in promoting people-to-people exchanges with the mainland, he should at least admit the one-China principle, which is a trend of the times. Just as Chinese President Xi Jinping said in his New Year address on Tuesday, "We Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to one and the same family. No one can ever sever the bond of kinship between us, and no one can ever stop China's reunification, a trend of the times."

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