Latest news with #TaiwaneseGovernment
BBC News
05-08-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Zero Day Attack: Taiwanese TV show imagines Chinese invasion and stokes debate
A Chinese fighter jet plane crashes in the waters off Taiwan's coast, prompting Chinese warships to blockade the island for a "search and rescue".Taiwanese soldiers manning Dadan Island, a rocky outcrop mere kilometres from China's coast, begin vanishing one night, a fishing boat lands on Dadan. A signal flare arcs into the inky sky – and illuminates Chinese soldiers who have spilled out of the boat and amassed on the is the key scenario in Zero Day Attack, a new Taiwanese television show about a fictional Chinese military invasion. Beijing has long viewed self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory, vowing to "reunify" with it some day while not ruling out the use of series, which aired its first episode over the weekend, was partially funded by the Taiwanese government, which hopes to raise awareness about the threat China poses. But the show has also landed at a highly divisive moment in Taiwan and attracted criticism of Day Attack focuses on how various parts of Taiwanese society grapple with the invasion, from the president to rural villagers. The anthology series features several scenarios on how an invasion could unfold, provided by defence experts consulted by the production team. These include the disruption of Taiwan's communication lines; Chinese disinformation campaigns; "fifth column" supporters of China stirring up unrest; and military officials turned collaborators who conspire against Chen Hsin-mei told the BBC she wanted to make the series to "warn the Taiwanese people that the war is really coming," citing China's rising use of "disinformation campaigns and grey zone warfare to put our society in chaos and make us confused about our identity". Zero Day Attack's message echoes the rhetoric of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-led government and its leader President William Lai, who have warned about China's threat and preached the need to raise the island's culture ministry has partially funded Zero Day Attack, while the military provided support for filming and production. Chunghwa Telecoms, Taiwan's largest telecommunications company in which the government has a minority stake, also contributed private investors include billionaire Robert Tsao, a well-known supporter of Taiwanese independence who has funded civil defence Chen told the BBC that at no point did the authorities try to influence the show. She also said she was not a member of the DPP or any political even before a single episode was broadcast, Zero Day Attack has become a political lightning rod, given the charged topic. 'Selling dried mangoes' A 17-minute trailer posted online last year by the production team swiftly racked up hundreds of thousands of views and some praised it for its message, others criticised it for sowing anxiety and discord with debate has intensified with the series premiere, which was the most-watched show on several platforms on Saturday, according to the production company. In recent days Wang Hung-wei, a prominent lawmaker from the opposition Kuomintang party, criticised Zero Day Attack as "selling dried mangoes", a Taiwanese euphemism that means stoking unnecessary fear about the destruction of one's to the government's funding of the show, Ms Wang said the DPP was "using the state apparatus to achieve its political goals".A commentary by Wang Kunyi of the Taiwan International Strategic Study Society accused the show of pushing Taiwan independence "so that Taiwan becomes a place that never knows peace".He added that it was evidence of Lai's government "once again using all kinds of channels to play the 'anti-Communist card' and stir up anxiety of war".The DPP and Lai are often accused by their critics, including the opposition and China, as pushing for Taiwan's independence. Any formal declaration as such would be considered as an act of war by Lai has in the past described himself as a "pragmatic worker for Taiwan's independence", he has also insisted Taiwan has no need to formally declare independence because it is already a sovereign nation. Zero Day Attack has also garnered positive reviews. One published by the public broadcaster PTS said it "expresses the worries and anxieties of Taiwanese from various political camps in a highly realistic and reasonable way"."It's a good watch," said one commenter on Zero Day Attack's Facebook page. "The Taiwanese people can relate to it as it reflects our current situation, the Chinese Communist Party must be repulsed as their tactics have been exposed."Some have praised the first episode, which depicts the invasion quietly beginning amid a contentious presidential election marked by violence and political were struck by how uncannily that episode reflected the current fractious mood in Taiwanese politics. Last month the island held a controversial failed recall vote of Kuomintang lawmakers accused of being too friendly with China. Another round will take place later this has led to questions about the show's timing and if it was meant to influence the recall votes. Ms Chen told the BBC that the show's production had begun long before the recall movement discussion around the show goes to the heart of one of Taiwan's most existential questions: how real is the threat of a Chinese invasion?Taiwan has had its own government since the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949. In the following decades, the island saw largely peaceful relations and stronger economic ties with show that most Taiwanese do not believe Beijing will attack imminently, and prefer the "status quo" in Taiwan's relationship with China, which means neither unifying with Beijing nor formally declaring the question of a Chinese invasion has become sharper and more political in recent grey zone warfare has spiked, raising fears that Chinese warplanes and ships repeatedly entering Taiwan's airspace and waters could trigger a conflict. The US warned this year that China poses an "imminent threat" to Taiwan. American officials have repeatedly claimed that Chinese President Xi Jinping is building up his military to be capable of invading Taiwan by has never confirmed this date. But it is a warning that Lai takes seriously. He has pledged to increase Taiwan's military spending, his government has carried out reforms in the army, and last month Taiwan staged its largest and longest ever Han Kuang drills aimed at defending against a possible Chinese has stressed that these efforts are aimed at protecting Taiwan and not to seek war. His political opponents however say he is antagonising Beijing which reviles Lai as a "separatist", and that he is leading Taiwan towards greater conflict with has repeatedly emphasised that it seeks "peaceful reunification" with Taiwan. It has dismissed any talk of a Chinese invasion as a pretext manufactured by those in favour of Taiwan independence to drum up Day Attack has been seen as one such provocation. Last week, Chinese defence ministry spokesman Zhang Xiaogang accused the DPP government of using the show to "peddle anxieties and attempting to provoke war".He said Zero Day Attack was "plunging Taiwan into the flames of war and using the Taiwan people as cannon fodder for 'Taiwan independence'.Ms Chen however insisted that her show is "not talking bad about China or depicting it as evil"."We are talking about war, and how Taiwanese people struggle and respond to it. And that's because the terror of war has never stopped, all over the world."
CNN
17-07-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Taiwan practices defense abilities in face of daily threats from China
The Taiwanese government is preparing for a war they hope will never happen. For the first time this year, Taiwan combined two major civil defense exercises, with the drills lasting ten days. These drills have included urban combat, mass casualty simulations, emergency supply drops and cyber defense that could be enacted if an invasion was to occur. CNN's Senior International Correspondent, Will Ripley, reports.
Free Malaysia Today
01-07-2025
- Politics
- Free Malaysia Today
China accuses Taiwan's president of spreading heresy
President Lai Ching-te has repeatedly said that only Taiwan's people can decide the island's future. (Taiwan's presidential office/AP pic) BEIJING : China yesterday accused Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te of 'heresy', hostility and provocation, after a speech in which he said the island is 'of course' a country and there is historical evidence and legal proof to back this up. Beijing says democratically governed Taiwan is 'sacred' Chinese territory that has belonged to China since ancient times, and that the island is one of its provinces with no right to be called a state. Lai and his government strongly reject that view, and have offered talks with China multiple times but have been rejected. China calls Lai a separatist. China's Taiwan affairs office, responding to Lai's Sunday evening speech, said he had intentionally distorted history to promote his Taiwan independence agenda and that the island has never been a country. 'It was a 'Taiwan independence' declaration that blatantly incited cross-strait confrontation, and a hodgepodge of 'Taiwan independence' fallacies and heresies full of errors and omissions,' it said in a statement. 'The fallacies fabricated by Lai Ching-te in contravention of history, reality and jurisprudence will only be swept into the rubbish heap of history.' Responding, Taiwan's China-policy making mainland affairs council said Lai was simply stating historical facts and Beijing's belief the island has been Chinese since ancient times and is not a country is 'just a fabricated lie without any basis'. 'We call on the Chinese communist authorities to face up to the fact that the Republic of China objectively exists and the status quo in the Taiwan Strait that 'the two sides are not subordinate to each other',' it added in a statement. In 1949, the Republic of China government fled to Taiwan after losing a civil war with Mao Zedong's communists, and that remains the island's formal name. Lai has repeatedly said that only Taiwan's people can decide their future, and that, as the People's Republic of China has never ruled the island, it has no right to claim it or speak on its behalf. Taiwan has over the past five years faced stepped-up military and political pressure from China, including war games.
Reuters
23-06-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
China says Taiwan president spreading 'heresy' with sovereignty speech
BEIJING, June 23 (Reuters) - China on Monday accused Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te of "heresy", hostility and provocation, after a speech in which he said the island is "of course" a country and there is historical evidence and legal proof to back this up. Beijing says democratically-governed Taiwan is "sacred" Chinese territory that has belonged to China since ancient times, and that the island is one of its provinces with no right to be called a state. Lai and his government strongly reject that view, and have offered talks with China multiple times but have been rejected. China calls Lai a separatist. China's Taiwan Affairs Office, responding to Lai's Sunday evening speech, said he had intentionally distorted history to promote his Taiwan independence agenda and that the island has never been a country. "It was a 'Taiwan independence' declaration that blatantly incited cross-strait confrontation, and a hodgepodge of 'Taiwan independence' fallacies and heresies full of errors and omissions," it said in a statement. "The fallacies fabricated by Lai Ching-te in contravention of history, reality and jurisprudence will only be swept into the rubbish heap of history." Lai has repeatedly said that only Taiwan's people can decide their future, and that, as the People's Republic of China has never ruled the island, it has no right to claim it or speak on its behalf. In 1949, the Republic of China government fled to Taiwan after losing a civil war with Mao Zedong's communists, and that remains the island's formal name. Taiwan has over the past five years faced stepped-up military and political pressure from China, including war games.
BBC News
20-06-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
China criticises UK warship HMS Spey sailing in Taiwan Strait
China's military has called a British warship's recent passage through the Taiwan Strait an act of "intentional provocation" that "undermines peace and stability" in the contested British Royal Navy says the HMS Spey's patrol was part of a long-planned deployment and was in accordance with international transit - the first by a British naval vessel in four years - comes as a UK carrier strike group arrives in the region for a deployment that will last several considers the self-ruled Taiwan its territory - a claim that Taiwan rejects - and has not ruled out the use of force to "reunify" the island. China has criticised the UK for "publicly hyping up" the journey of the HMS Spey, and said the UK's claims were "a distortion of legal principles and an attempt to mislead the public".It added that it had monitored HMS Spey throughout its journey in the strait. China's "theater command troops are on high alert at all times and will resolutely counter all threats and provocations", it foreign ministry has meanwhile praised the transit as an act that safeguarded the freedom of navigation in the Taiwan American warships regularly conduct freedom of navigation exercises in the strait, the last time such a journey was undertaken by a British naval vessel was in 2021 when the warship HMS Richmond was deployed to transit was similarly condemned by China, which had sent troops to monitor the HMS Spey is one of two British warships permanently on patrol in the passage through the Taiwan Strait comes as a UK carrier strike group, led by the HMS Prince of Wales aircraft carrier, arrives in the Indo-Pacific region for an eight-month PM Keir Starmer has described it as one of the carrier's largest deployments this century that is aimed at "sending a clear message of strength to our adversaries, and a message of unity and purpose to our allies".Around 4,000 UK military personnel are taking part in the group will be engaging with 30 countries through military operations and visits, and conduct exercises with the US, India, Singapore and tensions between China and Taiwan have heightened over the past year since Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te, who champions a firm anti-Beijing stance, took office. He has characterised Beijing as a "foreign hostile force" and introduced policies targeting Chinese influence operations in China continues to conduct frequent military exercises in the Taiwan Strait, including a live-fire exercise in April that it claimed simulated strikes on key ports and energy latest criticism of the HMS Spey's transit comes as two Chinese aircraft carriers conduct an unprecedented simultaneous military drill in the Pacific off the waters of Japan, which has alarmed Tokyo.
