Did you miss the latest events regarding the renewed tension around Taiwan? Do not panic, 20 minutes takes stock every day, since the visit of Nancy Pelosi, American number three and president of the House of Representatives, which has largely cooled relations between China and the United States. Who did what ? Who said what? Where are we ? The answer below:
The fact of the day
Taiwan is beefing up its defense. The island is planning an increase in its military budget, which will reach an unprecedented level. Taipei on Thursday proposed a new military budget of 13.7 billion euros for next year, an increase of 13% compared to last year. A special budget will also be allocated to the acquisition of fighter planes.
As a reminder, for some years now, Taipei has been modernizing its aging fleet of fighters, against the backdrop of constant pressure exerted via more frequent Chinese incursions into its air defense identification zone (Adiz). Last year, Taiwan recorded around 950 incursions by Chinese warplanes into its air defense zone, more than double the roughly 380 in 2020.
The number of the day
88,000. This is the number of men and women in the land forces of Taiwan. While Beijing’s rumblings have intensified under Xi Jinping’s presidency, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has proven that verbal threats can become concrete, Taipei remains vastly outnumbered. live in Beijing. China has one million members in its ground forces, according to Pentagon estimates.
sentence of the day
This battle to protect our homeland has shown the world that no threat whatsoever can shake the resolve of the Taiwanese people to defend their nation – not in the past, not today, not in the future. »
These are the words of the Taiwanese president who thus reaffirmed that her people remained determined to defend the island. Tsai Ing-wen made the statement on the 64th anniversary of China’s artillery campaign on the small island of Kinmen, known as the “823 Bombardment”.
The trend of the day
They remain vigilant but entrust a bit pinball knowing they are ill-prepared for a possible conflict. AFP journalists have met the reservists of the Taipei army and all feel “helpless” if a war against Beijing occurs. “I am absolutely not ready (for war), because four months, for me, is more a game than anything else,” said Henry Cheng, a 25-year-old reservist and insurance agent.
The young man completed his mandatory four-month military service last year, and thus joined the approximately 2.5 million reservists who can be mobilized in the event of an invasion. Still, the military maneuvers carried out this month by China have revived the debate in Taiwan and among its main Western allies on the state of preparation of its army. Conclusion: the latter is clearly outnumbered and materially inferior to the Chinese army.
As a result, President Tsai Ing-wen’s government is considering reinstating increased military service, as polls indicate that more than three-quarters of Taiwanese consider the length of service to be too short. Taipei has also stepped up training for reservists. Not enough, according to experts. Former US Army chief Mark Esper has called on Taiwan to extend its military service to one year and incorporate women. As for American and Taiwanese strategists, they are already pushing Taipei to adopt a Ukrainian-style “porcupine” strategy.
According to them, the Taiwanese population is however not ready to lead a fierce resistance like Mariupol or Severodonetsk, according to former air force colonel Richard Chou, who has twenty-one years of service. And to add: “It’s not just about holding a gun. [Les Taïwanais] must also learn to face things together, as a group, by being trained. Only then will they have any hope of resisting. »