President Lai highlights sense of threat in 1st foreign TV interview

Taipei, May 20 (CNA) In his first foreign television interview since taking office one year ago, President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) highlighted the sense of threat that China was posing to the world.

In the interview taped Sunday in Taipei and broadcast Monday night on the Japanese news program "news zero" by Nippon News Network, Lai was asked about the possibility of conflict with China by the show's host Sakurai Sho.

Lai said the world now realizes that China is attempting to change the rules-based international order, with annexation of Taiwan being only the first step.

If Taiwan were to be invaded, the world supply chain would be disrupted, making it crucial that cross-Taiwan Strait conflict is prevented, he said.

Asked whether the United States would help defend Taiwan in case of a conflict, Lai, not surprisingly, did not offer a direct answer.

Instead, he said: "President Biden and President Trump have given the media different answers. But whether under the Biden administration or Trump administration, Taiwan-U.S. ties have continued to get stronger."

Lai said World War II demonstrated the importance of strengthening Taiwan's defenses and using deterrence to maintain peace.

"We have to prepare for war in order to avoid war," he said.

As part of its efforts to deter an attack, Taiwan is developing uncrewed weapons, both to meet Taiwan's national security needs and also to promote industrial development.

Lai stressed that the development of such weapons was not intended to help Taiwan invade China but rather for self-defense.

The president noted that Taiwan and Japan have demonstrated strong bonds when helping each other to deal with disasters, and said the two sides can help each other overcome all kinds of hardships.

He expressed the hope that the U.S., Japan, and democratic nations will come together to prevent China from starting a war.

"Prevention is more important than cure," he said.

The interview was part of a Nippon News Network series dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II titled "Keeping the Present from Becoming the Pre-war Era."

(By Yang Ming-chu and Wu Kuan-hsien)

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