“We are an independent country already.” That was Tsai Ing-wen’s answer to the BBC in January 2020, days after Taiwanese voters handed her a second term by a landslide.
The interview aired on January 14. Asked whether Taiwan needed to declare independence, she said it did not, because it already had a government, a military and its own elections, and went by the name Republic of China, Taiwan. Beijing, she said, needed to face that reality. She also wanted more respect from China for the island.
She was just as direct about the military question. Preparedness matters, Tsai said, but international support matters even more. Taiwan had strengthened its capabilities, and she warned that “Invading Taiwan is something that is going to be very costly for China.”
Beijing holds its line
China had already answered the vote itself. On Sunday, January 12, its Foreign Ministry said that “no matter what changes there are to the internal situation in Taiwan,” the fact that there is only one China and that Taiwan is part of it would not change. The ministry added that Beijing would keep opposing Taiwan independence, and it asked the world to back what it called the “just cause” of national reunification.
Separately, China’s Taiwan Affairs Office said it would keep promoting “one country, two systems”, the model Beijing uses in Hong Kong. Tsai has firmly rejected that formula. According to Reuters, the pitch and the protests in Hong Kong dominated the election campaign.
Tsai’s own tone on election night was softer. Speaking on Saturday, once the scale of her win was clear, she called for talks with China to resume. She also said she hoped Beijing understood that Taiwan and its people would not bend to intimidation.
Her party, the Democratic Progressive Party, took a majority in parliament as well as the presidency.
The interview goes viral
The BBC interview travelled fast online. Taiwan News reported that a link posted to the r/worldnews section of Reddit on January 15 drew over 68,000 upvotes and nearly 3,000 comments. The most popular joke renamed China “Western Taiwan”, a mock answer to Beijing’s description of Taiwan as a breakaway province.
Sources
- Netizens call China 'West Taiwan' after Tsai's defiant interview | Taiwan News
- China won't change stance on Taiwan (Reuters copy) | Otago Daily Times
