‘By its actions, China is already a foreign hostile force,’ Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said.
Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te on March 13 pledged tougher measures to counter the infiltration and espionage activities from the Chinese communist regime.
Speaking from his office after meeting with senior security officials, Lai said Beijing has been taking advantage of Taiwan’s freedom and attempting to “divide, destroy, and subvert [Taiwan] from within.”
Lai said the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has infiltrated Taiwan’s media, politics, armed forces, and police to carry out its campaign.
“What they are trying to do is to sow seeds of discord in our society, keep us occupied with internal conflicts, and cause us to ignore the real threat from outside,” Lai told reporters.
Lai said Beijing has “actively” plotted ways to “infiltrate and spy on” Taiwan’s military.
In 2024, a total of 64 individuals were prosecuted by Taiwanese courts for spying for the CCP. Among them, two-thirds are active-duty or retired military members, the National Security Bureau in Taipei said in the report released in January.
“By its actions, China already satisfies the definition of a ‘foreign hostile force’ defined by our Anti-Infiltration Act,” Lai said. “We have no choice but to take even more proactive measures.”
As part of the 17 countermeasures he laid out at the press conference, Lai announced plans to review legislation aimed at restoring the military trial system for active-duty personnel suspected of aiding the enemy, alongside expanding criminal law to make any “expressions of loyalty to the enemy” a punishable offense.
Lai said his government will implement a strict review of Taiwan visits or residency applications by Chinese citizens and will make “necessary adjustments” to the flows of money, people, and technology across the strait.
In addition, he said the government will issue reminders to Taiwanese actors and singers performing in China on their statements and actions, a response to what Taipei sees as an ongoing Chinese campaign to pressure pop stars into making pro-CCP comments.
Confronted by “increasingly severe threats,” Lai pledged to do his best to ensure that the democratic way of life for Taiwan’s 23 million residents remains intact, but he called on the public to “stay vigilant and take action.”
“History tells us that any authoritarian act of aggression or annexation will ultimately end in failure,” Lai said. “The only way we can safeguard freedom and prevail against authoritarian aggression is through solidarity.”
By Dorothy Li
