Taiwan’s allies voice support as China ramps up intimidation

TAIPEI (TVBS News) — The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) warned Sunday (Jan. 7) of China's continued military intimidation of Taiwan aimed to influence the upcoming presidential election.

The MOFA said a joint statement following talks on Jan. 5 between U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink, Japanese Deputy Minister and Director-General Kobe Yasuhiro, and Republic of Korea Deputy Minister Chung Byung-won reiterated support for Taiwan. The meeting, held in Washington, was the first three-way dialogue to address Indo-Pacific issues.

China has been escalating its military threats toward Taiwan, recently deploying balloons across the Taiwan strait, repeatedly violating the airspace, and suspending parts of the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA), a preferential tariff system. Such actions pose severe threats to regional security and have raised concerns among the international community, MOFA said.

This behavior has raised suspicions of attempts to sway the presidential election and presents severe challenges to regional security, drawing attention from the international community.

MOFA stated that Taiwan will continue to cooperate with countries that share common ideologies – namely the U.S., Japan, and South Korea – to promote peace, stability, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region.