China changes tune as Taiwan election draws near
Last Updated on December 29, 2023 12:37 pm
TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Chinese authorities have shifted their messaging ahead of the Taiwan election scheduled for Jan. 13.
On Thursday (Dec. 28), Wu Qian (吳謙), a spokesman for China’s Defense Ministry, accused the Taiwanese government of “hyping up” the military threat from China, reported Reuters. This follows months of Chinese officials and media organizations saying the Taiwanese election is a choice between “war or peace.”
“The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities are deliberately hyping up the so-called ‘military threat from the mainland’ and exaggerating tensions,” said Wu. This contrasts with the earlier statements by Song Tao (宋濤), head of China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO), who in late August said that the Taiwan election amounted to “major choice between peace and war and between prosperity and recession.”
Beijing has made daily incursions of military aircraft and ships around Taiwan’s territory. In recent months, some Kuomintang officials have also taken up the line that support for the DPP is a tacit vote for war with China.
Despite the inconsistent messaging, the new tone taken by China’s defense ministry is likely an indication that China’s military is not actively pursuing any plans for an attack, invasion, or blockade of Taiwan in the aftermath of the country’s election.
Wu Qian’s remarks on Thursday also harshly criticized the U.S. for “stoking confrontation” with China and not taking “concrete steps” to ameliorate deteriorating relations between the two superpowers.