Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-Wen praised the island nation’s relationship with the United States under the Trump administration, saying that the two nations have “never been closer.”
Tsai made the remarks during a speech she gave to the Hudson Institute on Wednesday, in which she highlighted the increasing threat that China poses to Taiwan.
“Taiwan has become a full-fledged democracy. Our 23 million people have the right to determine our own futures, which is antithesis to the position Beijing has taken,” Tsai said. “Consequently, we must ensure that cross-strait interactions do not jeopardize our freedoms, democracy, and way of life. The people of Taiwan expect nothing less from their democratically elected government.”
“Upholding these principles requires us to be able to defend Taiwan against coercive actions,” Tsai continued. “It entails backing up our words with actions. And this is precisely what I have in mind as I preside over the current round of capacity building of our military. I am pleased that working together with our legislature last year, we unveiled our largest ever defense budget, reaching 2.3% of our GDP. I fully expect that this number will continue to grow, but what will be equally important is ensuring that these resources are being spent on the right capabilities. This is why I am committed to accelerating the development of asymmetric capabilities under the overall defense concept.” – READ MORE
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