My Take | Lai’s ‘hostile force’ claim is all about his secessionist agenda
The Taiwanese leader is ready to abuse both the island’s constitution and anti-infiltration law to challenge what is Beijing’s ultimate red line
Ever since Russia launched its ill-fated attempt to take over Ukraine in February 2022, Pentagon generals have been predicting year after year the time mainland China would really, finally, pull the trigger on the Taiwanese island.
Now President William Lai Ching-te has come up with his own forecast. Let the drums roll – it’s 2027. So be sure to liquidate your stocks before then! He has also openly designated mainland China as a “foreign hostile force”, with its obvious implication on “one China”.
But why not next year or 2028? Since those Pentagon predictions have come and gone, perhaps Chinese geomancy offers as good a chance at an accurate prediction as military science.
I do wonder: do People’s Liberation Army generals sit around a big table, with Xi Jinping presiding over, to pick a date and declare: this will be the year of decision!
It’s a strange business, this kind of invasion prediction. I am no military man but I thought a cardinal rule of any operation is the element of surprise. This is especially so for the Chinese when Sun Tzu’s Art of War has been a foundational text of their civilisation for two millennia.
Taiwan’s generals should be sacked if they are not preparing for a defence of the island at all times. Those invasion warnings are not for military planning, but public consumption.