Lai's 'defense' spending, flattery of Japan slammed

A Chinese mainland spokesman on Wednesday criticized Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party for "kowtowing" to foreign powers, warning that such behavior risks dragging the island into a dangerous predicament.

Peng Qing'en, spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said at a news conference that "Japan is attempting to stir up trouble by exploiting the Taiwan question, while the DPP authorities are colluding with external forces to create disturbances."

He condemned the DPP authorities for acting as "the destroyers of peace and the troublemakers" in the Taiwan Strait.

Responding to an opinion piece by Taiwan leader Lai Ching-te published in The Washington Post on Tuesday, Peng said the DPP's attempts to rely on the United States to pursue "independence "are doomed to fail.

He added that seeking independence through military means would only lead to self-destruction.

In the opinion piece, Lai pledged to raise Taiwan's "defense" budget to 3.3 percent of the island's GDP next year and to 5 percent by 2030, alongside a proposed $40 billion supplementary "defense" package. He also vowed to invest in advanced technologies, expand Taiwan's "defense "industrial base and deepen cooperation with partners.

"For its own selfish interests, the DPP authorities have allowed external forces to take whatever they want, squandering funds that could have improved livelihoods and driven economic development on purchasing weapons and currying favor with outside powers," Peng said, adding that such actions would only push Taiwan toward disaster.

Peng also criticized the DPP authorities' recent actions regarding Japan, following protests from Beijing over remarks made by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

Takaichi said in a meeting of the Diet on Nov 7, the national legislature of Japan, that the mainland's "use of force on Taiwan" could constitute a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan, implying the possibility of Japan's armed intervention in the Taiwan Strait. Takaichi subsequently refused to retract her position despite strong condemnation from China.

Commenting on a social media post by Lai on Friday showing him eating sushi and expressing support for Takaichi, Peng said, "Lai feeds on pro-Japan flattery and engages in acts that betray Taiwan." He described the behavior as "nauseating" and reflective of "an ugly nature that forgets one's roots and betrays the motherland".

Peng warned that any attempt by the Lai administration to rely on external forces would only bring humiliation. "Any external force that dares to provoke will ultimately bring about its own destruction," he said.

The criticism comes after the DPP authorities lifted Taiwan's longstanding import restrictions on Japanese food products on Friday. The ban had been imposed following the Fukushima nuclear accident in 2011.The mainland had previously suspended imports of aquatic products from Japan.

Peng accused the DPP authorities of placing political interests above public good, saying the decision "fully exposes their 'Taiwan independence' agenda and their shameless, bottomless flattery of Japan".

Despite Beijing's criticism of Takaichi's remarks, Lin Chia-lung, head of Taiwan's "foreign affairs department", publicly voiced support for the Japanese leader and encouraged Taiwan residents to travel to Japan and purchase Japanese goods.

"For their own political interests, the DPP authorities have bowed and scraped to external forces, deliberately heightening cross-Strait confrontation," Peng said. "Such actions will only push Taiwan into a perilous situation marked by escalating risks of conflict."

Peng stressed that the root cause of rising tensions in the Taiwan Strait lies in the DPP's obstinate commitment to a separatist agenda and their collusion with external forces.

lishangyi@chinadaily.com.cn