INTERVIEW/Measures being prepared to counter Chinese espionage: Cho

Taipei, May 9 (CNA) Preparations for measures to tackle espionage, infiltration, propaganda and other national security threats from China are under way, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said Friday.

In an interview with CNA, Cho said the Cabinet has identified more than 100 measures and law revisions to better address Chinese threats after President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) convened a national security meeting in mid-March.

Following that meeting, Lai pledged to reinstate military courts, restrict private-sector exchanges across the Taiwan Strait, expand the screening of cross-strait flows of talent, goods, and capital, as well as work with partner countries to reject Beijing's claims over Taiwan.

The president specifically raised the alarm over the growing number of former and active-duty military personnel in Taiwan who have been accused or indicted for spying for China in recent years.

Since then, however, a series of espionage investigations into aides employed by senior Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government officials have also sparked concerns in Taiwanese society.

One of them was Ho Jen-chieh (何仁傑), who worked for Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) when the latter was National Security Council secretary-general from May 2016 to May 2017, Presidential Office secretary-general from May 2017 to February 2018, and foreign minister from 2018 to 2024.

Other suspects in the case include Wu Shang-yu (吳尚雨), who worked as an adviser in Lai's office; Chiu Shih-yuan (邱世元), former deputy head of the DPP's Taiwan Institute of Democracy, and Huang Chu-jung (黃取榮), an aide to DPP New Taipei Councilor Lee Yu-tien (李余典).

Calling Chinese espionage within the DPP government unacceptable, Cho said among the measures identified by the Cabinet, priority will be given to reforming rules for special background checks on individuals who may have access to classified government information.

However, he did not provide details on what those reforms could involve.

The premier said such reforms will first be implemented in the Executive Yuan, adding that he hoped the Legislature would later follow suit.

It is common for legislators to ask for sensitive information from the executive body and oftentimes their assistants have access to it, too, he argued.

Cho stressed the government has always welcomed healthy and sustainable cross-strait exchanges but actions are needed to combat Chinese united-front work and infiltration, as well as other threats.

During the interview, Cho also criticized Kuomintang (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) for comparing Lai to Adolf Hitler, noting that such remarks undermine Taiwan's image in the international community.

It is deeply inappropriate of Taiwan's main opposition party to make such comments and even push back on criticism made by foreign representative offices, he added, referring to protests lodged by German and Israeli offices against Chu.

Meanwhile, regarding the ongoing negotiations between Taiwan and the United States in response to the Trump administration's "reciprocal tariffs" policy, Cho said that labeling regulations for "Made in Taiwan" (MIT) products are a major topic of discussion.

Given the close economic exchanges between Taiwan and China, one of the key issues in the negotiations is how to prevent Chinese exports from evading U.S. tariffs by being rerouted through Taiwan and falsely labeled as MIT products, which could harm Taiwan's industrial interests, Cho said.