Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen stated on the 16th that “cannot accept the surrender mentality of ‘the first battle is the final battle’.” Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng, in a media interview on the 17th, emphasized President Tsai’s view that Taiwan cannot accept the surrender mentality and stressed the need for everyone to recognize that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is the troublemaker in the region.
President Tsai Ing-wen, during the “100th Anniversary Celebration of the Founding of the Whampoa Military Academy” on the 16th, put forward three points of encouragement: firstly, to deeply understand the historical significance of “sacrifice, unity, and accountability”; secondly, to dedicate oneself wholeheartedly to the people of the country; and thirdly, to defend national sovereignty. She emphasized that sovereignty is the foundation of a country, and Taiwan is integral to the Republic of China (ROC). Those entering the Military Academy are shouldering the heavy responsibility of defending the country. “We absolutely cannot blur the line between foe and friend, nor can we accept the surrender mentality of ‘the first battle is the final battle’.”
President Tsai stated that as the President and Commander-in-Chief of the three armed forces, his responsibility is to lead the country, unite the people, safeguard Taiwan, and promote democracy, peace, and prosperity. He will actively implement the “Four Pillars of Peace Action Plan,” strengthen national defense capabilities, promote value diplomacy, stand shoulder to shoulder with global democratic countries to collectively display deterrence, prevent war, be prepared for war to avoid war, achieve peace through strength, and create prosperity and development.
The Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee of the ROC Legislative Yuan invited Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng to report on the “Progress and Effectiveness of the Sea and Air Combat Power Enhancement Plan Procurement” and the “Confidential Project Budget Requirements of the Ministry of National Defense” today. Prior to the meeting, Chiu Kuo-cheng stated in a media interview that President Tsai’s intention is to reject the surrender mentality because accepting the concept of “the first battle is the final battle” is equivalent to surrender. Therefore, his underlying message is, “We cannot accept the concept of ‘the first battle is the final battle’.”
Chiu Kuo-cheng mentioned that Taiwan’s strategy is defensive, aiming to continuously strengthen its self-defense capabilities and determination, strategically targeting potential enemy actions, progressively developing defense concepts, and gradually weakening the enemy’s ability to attack Taiwan, preventing the enemy’s invasion goals from being achieved.
He emphasized that Taiwan’s strategic scenario is based on asymmetric warfare thinking to construct a multi-layered deterrence and continuously weaken the enemy’s combat capabilities during the deterrence process until their attempted landing operation fails.
Chiu Kuo-cheng pointed out that due to the continuous military expansion of the CCP and its attempts in the Taiwan Strait to change the status quo through various threats and military harassments, the CCP is the troublemaker for regional peace and stability, a fact that everyone should clearly recognize.
In response to President Tsai Ing-wen’s statement on “the first battle is the final battle” during his speech at the Military Academy, Taiwanese legislator Chen Guan-ting expressed through a video to the media today that he believes the concept of “the first battle is the final battle” is more applicable to the CCP.
Chen Guan-ting stressed that in order to avoid war, Taiwan must continuously strengthen its national defense capabilities to establish sufficient deterrence. At the same time, Taiwan should actively expand its diplomatic relations and security alliances with other countries. He urged the parliament to support the government in allocating more resources to national security rather than other futile “money pit bills”.
Chen Guan-ting analyzed that in the event of a major international conflict initiated by the CCP, it will inevitably face diplomatic isolation, economic sanctions, and multi-faceted strikes such as military deployment by the alliance led by the United States. Similar to the post-Russia-Ukraine war, Western countries imposed extensive economic sanctions on Russia, freezing about $300 billion of Russian overseas assets, causing significant economic impact.
He said that likewise, the CCP’s military provocation against Taiwan may have a devastating impact on its economy, trade, technology, and other areas. For the CCP, “the first battle” may very well mean the “final battle”.