On the eve of Taiwan’s first wave of recall elections, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has deployed a large number of military aircraft and vessels to disturb Taiwan for two consecutive days. The Ministry of National Defense stated that from 6 a.m. on the 24th to 6 a.m. today (25th), they detected 34 CCP aircraft and vessels, and the Taiwanese military is closely monitoring and responding to the situation. The CCP’s Taiwan Affairs Office voiced support for the Kuomintang’s opposition to the recalls, while Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council urged the CCP not to interfere in Taiwan’s democratic process.
Taiwanese civil groups have criticized the parliament expansion bill led by some blue and white party legislators as “unconstitutional chaos” that ignores public opinion, leading to a mass recall movement. The first wave of recalls targeting 24 Kuomintang legislators and the suspended mayor of Hsinchu City, Ko Hung-an, will be voted on the 26th; while the recalls of 7 Kuomintang legislators are scheduled for August 23.
This morning, the Ministry of National Defense of the Republic of China announced the movements of CCP forces in the waters and airspace around the Taiwan Strait, revealing that from 6 a.m. on the 24th to 6 a.m. today, they detected 26 instances of CCP aircraft (24 of which crossed the median line of the strait and entered the airspace in the north and southwest), 7 CCP vessels, and 1 government ship, totaling 34 CCP aircraft and vessels continuing activities around the Taiwan Strait. The Taiwanese military is using aircraft carriers and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor and respond to the situation.
On the morning of the 24th, the Ministry of National Defense of the Republic of China announced the dynamics of CCP forces in the waters and airspace around the Taiwan Strait from 6 a.m. on the 23rd to 6 a.m. on the 24th. They detected 48 instances of CCP aircraft (with 36 of them crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait entering the airspace in the north, southwest, and east), 9 CCP vessels, and 1 government ship, totaling 58 CCP aircraft and vessels continuing activities around the Taiwan Strait. The Taiwanese military is closely monitoring and responding to the situation using aircraft carriers and shore-based missile systems.
When asked by the media about the characterization of Taiwan’s 726 recall vote as “anti-communist and pro-Taiwan,” CCP Taiwan Affairs Office spokesperson Zhu Fenglian expressed support for Kuomintang legislators opposing the recalls. The CCP’s official newspaper People’s Daily published an article on the 23rd by Wang Yingjin, director of the Cross-Strait Relations Research Center at Renmin University of China, titled “The Fallacy of ‘The People’s Republic of China Has Never Ruled Taiwan’ Should Cease.” Taipei Democratic Progressive Party councilor Hong Chien-yi revealed on the 23rd that a United Front unit in Dongguan offered discounted air tickets to encourage Taiwanese businesspeople and their family members to return to Taiwan before the recall vote.
The Mainland Affairs Council of the Republic of China issued a press release pointing out that the CCP’s Taiwan Affairs Office and official media have clearly attempted to influence the 726 recall vote in Taiwan, making open and unapologetic interventions. From central to local government media, there are hundreds of related videos and articles, with an alarming quantity, repeatedly disseminated through Weibo, Douyin, and WeChat, and reported by related Taiwanese media, manipulated and spread in multiple layers of intervention to an unprecedented extent.
Responding to recent reports by foreign media that the CCP is supporting specific political parties to intervene in Taiwan’s recall vote, the Mainland Affairs Council of the Republic of China stated that the CCP has been known to intervene in various elections in Taiwan through various means, attempting to interfere in Taiwan’s democratic process, a fact recognized globally, with academic institutions internationally issuing warnings.
The Mainland Affairs Council of the Republic of China emphasized that elections and recalls are basic rights granted to the people of democratic countries. The people of Taiwan autonomously determine the results of recall voting, which is also an expression of diverse opinions in Taiwan’s democratic society. The CCP has no authority to intervene and should refrain from making unwarranted comments.
The Mainland Affairs Council of the Republic of China called on the Beijing authorities not to interfere in Taiwan’s democratic process and to consider whether the CCP could safeguard the right of its own people to freely express opinions while ensuring that Taiwan’s people can express diverse views without interference. The CCP should not suppress and restrict the development of its own civil society internally while attempting to meddle in Taiwan’s internal affairs.