On May 20, 2024, Lai Ching-te delivered his inaugural speech as the 16th President of the Republic of China, emphasizing the goal of building a democratic, peaceful, and prosperous Taiwan that maintains the status quo and seeks peaceful co-prosperity across the Taiwan Strait. Regarding Lai Ching-te’s remarks on cross-strait relations, several overseas Chinese scholars have offered their insights on his speech.
Lai Ching-te stated that he will uphold the “Four Persistences” in cross-strait issues: maintaining the status quo without being servile or arrogant. He called on the mainland to recognize the existence of the Republic of China and cease the use of verbal and military threats against Taiwan, while committing to maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the region to ensure the world is free from the fear of war.
He urged cross-strait relations to be based on principles of equality and dignity, advocating for dialogue over confrontation, exchanges over isolation, and cooperation. He suggested initiatives like restarting bilateral equal tourism and allowing mainland students to study in Taiwan as starting points to pursue peaceful co-prosperity. At the same time, he cautioned against having illusions, noting that as long as the Chinese Communist Party has not renounced the use of force against Taiwan, even if Taiwan fully accepts China’s claims and gives up sovereignty, China’s attempt to annex Taiwan will not disappear.
In his speech, Lai Ching-te mentioned the Republic of China nine times and the Republic of China Taiwan three times, as well as the Republic of China Constitution once, but did not reference the Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area.
Legal expert and independent commentator Yu Ping remarked that Lai Ching-te’s speech primarily emphasized Taiwan’s subjectivity. “I just counted, he mentioned Taiwan about 88 times, of course, some were mixed with the Republic of China, but he only said the Republic of China 12 times (including three times together with Taiwan).”
Yu Ping believes that Lai Ching-te’s stance toward the mainland is relatively firm, without reducing tensions in the Taiwan Strait crisis. In contrast, when Tsai Ing-wen was elected in 2020, her speech was relatively softer towards the mainland, cleverly buying time.
Associate Professor Feng Chong-yi from the University of Technology Sydney on May 20 commented to The Epoch Times that Lai Ching-te’s speech on cross-strait relations remains pragmatic.
“He still talks about democracy, peace, and prosperity, emphasizing that peace is priceless, and there are no winners in war. He maintains the status quo without arrogance, and that’s his motto. His final vision is for the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of China to coexist and prosper, emphasizing dialogue instead of confrontation. He does not want to confront Xi Jinping, but Xi Jinping does not give him dialogue.”
Feng Chong-yi believes that Lai Ching-te is still following Tsai Ing-wen’s basic tone. “If you want dialogue, the door is open, but if you want me to surrender, to disarm without fighting, and there is no door, I think this is still a quite pragmatic position.”
Lai Ching-te stated in his speech that Taiwan will continue to form a democratic community with democratic countries and emphasized Taiwan’s strategic position as the “first island chain.”
Feng Chong-yi believes that Taiwan’s greatest challenge is the Chinese Communist Party’s verbal and military threats. However, Taiwan’s opportunities outweigh the challenges, receiving increasingly strong support from democratic countries in the world. The Taiwanese people’s confidence in resisting China and protecting Taiwan, forming an international circle of allies led by the United States, has deterred the Chinese Communist Party, shattering Xi Jinping’s grand delusions.
Yu Ping stated that Lai Ching-te is continuing Tsai Ing-wen’s trajectory of integrating into a league of democratic countries, which is excellent. If Taiwan wants to truly become a safer place, it must unite with democratic countries around the world to resist China together.
Before Lai Ching-te delivered his inaugural speech, two American think tanks released reports suggesting that the Chinese Communist Party is more likely to take actions to seize Taiwan without firing a shot.
Lai Ching-te mentioned in his speech the various “threat infiltrations” from the Chinese Communist Party and called for raising awareness of national defense among the people, strengthening national security legislation, and actively implementing the “Four Pillars of Peace” action plan.
Feng Chong-yi stated that Taiwan’s academic community is very clear about the threat of the Chinese Communist Party’s united front tactics. The concern now is the conflicts between the ruling and opposition parties in the legislature. The Republican and Democratic parties in the United States fiercely oppose each other, but they have a considerable consensus on countering the Chinese regime, something Taiwan has not yet achieved. This is a hidden danger.
Lai Ching-te repeatedly emphasized the sense of national belonging, saying, “Whether it is the Republic of China, the Republic of China Taiwan, or Taiwan, these are the names of our country that resonate the same, whether from ourselves or international friends.”
Feng Chong-yi believes this is the brightest spot in Lai Ching-te’s speech, hoping that all Taiwanese, including blue camp, green camp, and the new People First Party, can unite and jointly resist the threat from China. “This practical spirit is where I feel the strongest.”
Independent commentator Cai Shen-kun stated on May 20 to The Epoch Times that Tsai Ing-wen is restrained, whereas Lai Ching-te is frank. On the issue of cross-strait relations, Tsai Ing-wen maintains a vague position, while Lai Ching-te respects the current cross-strait status, recognizing that the People’s Republic of China is China, and the Republic of China is Taiwan, and they are not subordinate to each other.
He believes that Lai Ching-te will further strengthen Taiwan’s sovereignty consciousness. Due to the Chinese Communist Party’s increasing open warfare penetration into Taiwan and the escalation of military threats, the possibility of a major conflict between the two sides cannot be excluded.