Taipei [Taiwan], December 7: Writing on social network X on December 5, leader Lai Thanh Duc said he had just had a phone call with leaders in the US Congress, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson and Democratic leader in the House Hakeem Jeffries. In addition, he also had a phone call with Senator Roger Wicker - the leading figure of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
Concerns rise
The move is seen as an attempt by Taipei to strengthen ties with Washington as Taiwan is seen as facing challenges under the incoming US administration. Specifically, some analysts believe that US President-elect Donald Trump is mainly focused on the trade war with China to gain benefits, rather than being too "keen" on defending Taipei from Beijing.
Meanwhile, Beijing still considers a military attack as one of the solutions to "reclaim" Taiwan. Since August 2022 - when then-Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan, mainland China has pushed military tensions in the Taiwan Strait to a new level with increasingly greater pressure. Even recently, in October, China conducted a "huge" exercise with the participation of 153 military aircraft and many naval and law enforcement ships in a scenario of blockade of Taiwan.
Commenting on the situation in Taiwan, Ms. Bonnie S. Glaser (Director of the Asia Program, German Marshall Fund in the US), a long-time analyst of the regional situation, recently raised the issue: "Beijing has stepped up its political campaign through the United Nations and in diplomatic relations to seek consensus for its claim of sovereignty over Taiwan". "Beijing is laying the legal foundation to eventually use force against Taiwan", Ms. Glaser commented and called on the upcoming administration of Mr. Donald Trump to "prioritize preventing Beijing from using military force to take over Taiwan".
Party Plan
The Wall Street Journal recently cited a confidential report revealing that China is studying the case of Russia on how to deal with Western sanctions after conducting a military campaign against Ukraine. According to analysts, if mainland China launches a military attack on Taiwan, Washington and the West can only provide weapons to Taipei while simultaneously sanctioning Beijing. Therefore, China's study of the case of Russia can be seen as a preparation step for the scenario of using military force to annex Taiwan.
Meanwhile, Taiwan has recently stepped up its arms purchases to strengthen its defense capabilities. The US has approved a package of equipment and spare parts for F-16 fighter jets.
In particular, Taiwan has recently made a rare move by using the campus of Taipei University to train reservists for urban warfare against the mainland. The training is meant to prepare for urban warfare, whereas the focus of previous training has been to prevent the Chinese military from reaching Taiwanese cities. Taiwan's Defense Ministry has stressed the need for such preparations to ensure the island's ability to respond to potential attacks from Beijing .
In addition, in the final days of his term, the administration of US President Joe Biden has also moved to increase defense support for Taiwan. Specifically, the US recently deployed the M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) to Japan's Nansei Island. This location is close to Taiwan's islands. Quite famous in the Ukrainian battlefield, HIMARS is also capable of launching ATACMS missiles (with a range of up to 300 km) rather than just firing conventional rockets. In addition, on November 24, Kyodo News Agency reported that Japan and the US are moving towards drafting a joint military plan to respond to emergencies in Taiwan, including launching missiles.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
