Tsai made the remarks at official ceremonies in Taipei on Sunday, the end of a tense week between China and Taiwan for decades, including record numbers of Chinese military planes heading to the Taiwanese defense zone and a speech by Xi Jinping of China promising a reunion. and Taiwan.
Tsai said Taiwan would not “act in a hurry” but “there should be no idea that Taiwanese people will bow to pressure”. force Taiwan to adopt the Chinese approach, ”he said. “This is because the way China has set does not provide a free and democratic way of life in Taiwan, or a monarchy for our 23 million people.”
His remarks came just days after China expanded the number of fighter jets to its defense base with a sharp escalation of military conflicts. Chinese President Xi Jinping on Saturday vowed to pursue what Beijing called “unification” with Taiwan in a peaceful manner.
“Those who forget their values, who betray their country and want to divide the country will not help,” Xi said. He reiterated calls for Taipei to join Beijing under the “one country, two-way” model, similar to the one used in Hong Kong – but often opposed by Taiwan.
In response, Tsai said on Sunday that Taiwan was hopeful that “relations between the people would be reduced” and would not “act hastily,” but stressed that “there should be no speculation that Taiwanese people will tolerate oppression.”
