Analysis

The People's Liberation Army's (PLA) large-scale joint exercises around Taiwan on Tuesday were accompanied by strident propaganda comparing itself to a mighty monkey warrior in Chinese mythology and Taiwan's president to a parasite, but experts say these messages were primarily meant for domestic audiences and lost on the people in Taiwan.

Following a Chinese government work report presented during the "Two Sessions" on Wednesday, experts said China is likely to take more "subtle" actions against Taiwan independence in 2025, while also pointing to the omission of the word "peace" from a key policy report.

The Taiwan-related section in China's government work report, presented during the "Two Sessions" on Wednesday, placed greater emphasis on the promotion of integration and unification of Taiwan with China, experts told CNA.

Aaron Friedberg, a politics and international affairs professor at Princeton University, said it would not be easy for the United States to rapidly implement a tariff on imported semiconductors because the cost of the policy to the country would be too high.

Taiwan needs to urgently focus on announcing policies and investment plans in support of U.S. President Donald Trump's administration, instead of hoping to change the American president's view on the semiconductor industry and trade, a defense and security expert has told CNA.

Defense and foreign policy experts on Friday said that military strength is essential for maintaining peace following U.S. President Donald Trump's calls for NATO nations and Taiwan to increase defense spending.

President Lai Ching-te's (賴清德) plan to further encourage Taiwan's businesses to invest in the United States and increase the country's defense budget is a good move after U.S. President Donald Trump outlined his plan to impose tariffs on foreign countries, scholars told CNA.

Two scholars said that Taiwan's tech sector would likely avoid the worst effects if U.S. President Donald Trump follows through on his latest tariff threat, made Thursday in Washington, D.C., though the full impact is unclear due to no concrete details.

If U.S. President Donald Trump imposes tariffs on chips from Taiwan, it could not only isolate the United States' economy and disconnect the country from "global value chains," but also potentially push Taiwan closer to China, a U.S. expert told CNA.

The United States government's alleged plan to encourage Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) to form a joint venture with Intel to boost American chipmaking will place the Taiwanese foundry giant in a more disadvantageous position than proposed tariffs on imported chips, a semiconductor expert said Thursday.