INTERNACIONAL
China threat looms large as Taiwan votes in pivotal election: ‘choice between war and peace’
The future of Taiwan hangs in the balance as voters head to the polls to pick their next president in what remains a closely watched contest with intense interest from China and the U.S.
«This election has been a real test for whether the Taiwan electorate is willing to push back against Chinese pressure and coercion and make an independent choice for who they want to be their next leader,» Matt McInnis, senior fellow for the Institute for the Study of War’s China program, told Fox News Digital.
«That choice is going to determine the nature of the security situation over the next four years — in particular in the western Pacific,» McInnis said, noting the most expected result will see the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) win.
BIDEN TO SEND DELEGATION TO TAIWAN DAYS AFTER ELECTION IN MOVE LIKELY TO ANGER CHINA
People vote for the presidential election at a polling station in southern Taiwan’s Tainan city on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024. Taiwanese are casting their votes Saturday for a new president in an election that could chart the trajectory of its relations with China over the next four years. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
The DPP faces stiff competition from the Koumintang (KMT), or Chinese Nationalist Party, which has tried to cast the ruling party as dangerous leadership that will steer the country towards conflict with China due to its insistence on pursuing formal independence.
William Lai of the DPP leads with an average of 36% of the vote, while KMT’s Hou Yu-ih has 31% and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) candidate Ko Wen-je sits at 24% as of Jan. 1, according to The Economist.
Taiwan does not release any new polls within 10 days of the election, but voter sentiment shows that some polls have the leading candidates separated by just 1%.
Supporters of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) hold up banners during a campaign rally in Taipei City, Taiwan, on Thursday. (Annabelle Chih/Getty Images)
McInnis noted that Taiwan officials have already highlighted «pervasive» Chinese information operations «at unprecedented levels,» framing the election as a «choice between war and peace.»
China has not publicly named a preferred candidate or specified what the «right» choice is, but Beijing’s Taiwan Affairs Office labeled DPP’s candidate William Lai as an «obstinate Taiwan independence worker» who would further promote separatist activities.
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Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry condemned China for «once again blatantly intimidating the Taiwanese people and the international community» and trying to influence the election.
«China has tried to shape that narrative over the past 10 to 12 months, and I think they’ve been fairly effective with that,» McInnis explained, arguing that «China’s influence operations, psychological operations during the campaign… ultimately is not dramatically swinging the election in the way they would like it to.»
Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate William Lai votes in southern Taiwan’s Tainan city on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
Beijing has employed other tactics to influence Taiwanese voters, including economic pressure and some broad military coercion: China launched a satellite on Tuesday that flew over Taiwan as it exited the atmosphere, and some surveillance balloons wandered into Taiwan’s airspace, China expert Gordon Chang told Fox News Digital.
«[Chinese President] Xi Jinping in his 2024 New Year message actually listed the annexation of Taiwan in the portion of his speech where he put all the things he hoped would occur [this year],» Chang explained. «Of course, there have been threats to cut off trade, they have worked very closely in China with some of the candidates in Taiwan, so the election interference has been substantial.»
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Chang also noted the negative impact China’s pressure has had on its ambitions, prompting the voters to instead focus on geopolitical issues and «issues of identity.»
«Those who identify as Chinese only [on Taiwan] is usually less than 5%, and that is the core support of KMT,» Chang said.
Hou Yu-ih, presidential candidate for the Kuomintang and mayor of New Taipei City, arrives for a news conference in Taipei, Taiwan, on Thursday. (Chan Long Hei/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Chang called Taiwan’s election «fascinating,» arguing that even if China’s preferred candidate should win, he expects to see «friction» between the island and the mainland.
«If you have a pro-China president… there’s going to be friction regardless of who was elected, and we have just got to make sure we do not permit China to interfere anymore,» he said.
CHINA FLOATS PLAN TO FOSTER ECONOMIC TIES WITH DEMOCRAT-LED CITIES: REPORT
Chinese President Xi Jinping reviews the honour guard during a welcome ceremony at The Great Hall of the People on November 22, 2023 in Beijing, China. (Florence Lo – Pool/Getty Images)
Lai has tried to reach out and start a dialogue with Beijing following eight years of near-total non-communication, but insisted that he would continue to «build up Taiwan’s defense deterrence, strengthen Taiwan’s capabilities in economic security, enhance partnerships with democracies around the world and maintain stable and principled leadership on cross-Strait relations.»
Lai has also, in turn, portrayed the KMT as a pro-Beijing group, which has various levels of allegiance to the mainland ranging from a similar stance to the DPP’s own to one that seeks distance with the U.S. to maintain strong, positive relations with the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP), according to The Diplomat. A small number of die-hard party members still seek reunification with China — a stance at odds with the opinion of the public.
Supporters of Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) attend an election campaign rally in Taipei, Taiwan, on Thursday. (Annice Lyn/Getty Images)
Heino Klinck, former deputy assistant secretary of defense for East Asia and military attaché to China, puts a lot of weight on public sentiment to maintain autonomy.
«The election in Taiwan is a manifestation of what a vibrant democracy looks like,» Klinck told Fox News Digital, calling Taiwan «a very striking juxtaposition to what the People’s Republic of China represents.»
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«It evolved relatively peacefully from an autocratic one-party nation to a very, very vibrant democracy in all its forms, and it shows you that democracy can work,» Klinck added, suggesting that, «From a U.S.-Taiwan bilateral perspective… whoever will be leading [Taiwan], it’s not going to change much.»
«I could see nuances in the approach that a new Taiwanese president, depending on who it is, will take with respect to the cross-Strait relationship and, more specifically, from a national security and defense perspective,» Klinck explained. He highlighted concerns that the KMT might «roll back some of the progress that has been made under the leadership of President Tsai [Ing-wen].»
Klinck visited Taiwan as part of a delegation from the Ronald Reagan Foundation to demonstrate the strong ties between the U.S. and Taiwan and meet with Tsai, who stressed the shared values of freedom and democracy between the two countries.
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Klinck stressed that as much as the election itself matters, he would suggest keeping an eye on the months between the election and the inauguration in May, during which time he expects Beijing to ramp up pressure on the president-elect — especially in the event DPP’s Lai does win.
«I envision that the Chinese will escalate their pressure on the president-elect because the inaugural speech will set a tone and the Chinese will try to influence that tone,» Klinck said.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
INTERNACIONAL
Guerra en Ucrania: Trump «clama encarecidamente» a Putin que salve la vida de miles de tropas ucranianas «rodeadas»
El posteo de Trump comienza diciendo que su equipo tuvo «conversaciones muy buenas y productivas con el presidente ruso, Vladimir Putin», el jueves, en alusión al encuentro con el enviado de Trump Steve Witkoff en Moscú.
En ese encuentro a puertas cerradas, Putin habría comunicado a Witkoff lo que ya había advertido en una rueda de prensa más temprano: que aceptaba la tregua de 30 días acordada entre Ucrania y Estados Unidos, días atrás, pero «que había mucho trabajo por hacer».
A esa aclaración, Putin habría agregado una serie de imposibles condiciones para Kiev, como quedarse con parte del territorio ucraniano ocupado.
En su posteo, Trump luego se refiere a las tropas ucranianas «rodeadas», probablemente en la región rusa de Kursk, donde las fuerzas del Kremlin han estado avanzando contra las fuerzas ucranianas.
A pesar de que el presidente estadounidense se refiere a «miles» de tropas aisladas, es poco probable que este sea el caso, aunque es cierto que los ucranianos están perdiendo su posición en Kursk, una porción de suelo ruso que Kiev logró controlar meses atrás.
El jueves, la localidad de Sudzha fue recuperada por las fuerzas rusas. A principios de semana se vieron imágenes de las tropas ucranianas huyendo de esa ciudad clave.
En su mensaje Trump escribió: «EN ESTE MISMO MOMENTO, MILES DE TROPAS UCRANIANAS ESTÁN COMPLETAMENTE RODEADAS POR EL EJÉRCITO RUSO, EN UNA SITUACIÓN MUY MALÍSIMA Y VULNERABLE.
He solicitado encarecidamente al presidente Putin que se les perdone la vida.
Esta sería una masacre horrible, no vista desde la Segunda Guerra Mundial.
¡Que Dios los bendiga a todos!».
Donald Trump ha presentado su postura sobre la guerra como la de una figura humanitaria que quiere detener las matanzas, opinó Clarke.
Hamas agreed Friday to release Edan Alexander, the last living American hostage in captivity in the Gaza Strip.
Alexander, a 21-year-old Israeli-American, will be released along with the bodies of four other hostages, according to a deal offered by mediators. As of Friday, Alexander has been held captive for 525 days, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said.
The bodies that will be released are of dual-national hostages, the Associated Press reported. It’s unclear when the transfer will happen, but it comes as talks are ongoing in Qatar to establish the next phase of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, the first phase of which ended on March 1.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Friday that he will convene his ministerial team on Saturday to receive a detailed report from negotiators and decide on the next steps for the release of the hostages.
MEET EDAN ALEXANDER, THE LAST LIVING AMERICAN HOSTAGE IN HAMAS CAPTIVITY
Edan Alexander, born in Tel Aviv and raised in New Jersey, is currently being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza. (Hostage Family Forum)
Steve Witkoff, special envoy to the Middle East, presented to Israel and Hamas a U.S. proposal for extending the ceasefire by several weeks in exchange for more hostage releases from Hamas and the resumption of humanitarian aid into the war-torn Gaza Strip, Axios reported Thursday, citing sources with direct knowledge of the plan.
«While Israel has accepted the Witkoff proposal, Hamas remains firm in its refusal and has not moved an inch,» Netanayhu said Friday. «At the same time, it continues to employ manipulations and psychological warfare.»
Last week, Witkoff told reporters outside the White House that «Edan Alexander is very important to us as all the hostages are.»
Senior Hamas official Basem Naim told Fox News on Friday that «a delegation from the Hamas movement’s leadership received a proposal from mediators yesterday to resume negotiations, and responded responsibly and positively.
«The movement submitted its response early this morning, agreeing to release… Edan Alexander, who holds U.S. citizenship, along with the remains of four others with dual citizenship,» Naim added. «We reaffirm our full readiness to engage in negotiations and reach a comprehensive agreement on the issues of the second phase, and call for obligating the occupation to fully implement its commitments.»
Though he spent most of his life in New Jersey, Alexander was born in Israel a few months before his parents moved to the U.S., according to the American Jewish Committee (AJC).
After graduating from high school, Alexander decided he would enlist in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) rather than enroll in college.
Yael Alexander, the mother of hostage Edan Alexander, speaks during The ‘Run for Their Lives’ rally and run in Central Park on the 100th day since the October 7 attack by Hamas, on Jan. 14, 2024 in New York City. (Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images)
On Oct. 7, Alexander, who was serving in the IDF’s Golani Brigade, an infantry unit, was patrolling near Gaza when Hamas’ attacks on Israel began. The attacks ended with 1,200 Israelis dead and 251 hostages taken, including Alexander.
Yael Alexander, Edan’s mother, recounted the day he was taken hostage in a recent interview with AJC’s «People of the Pod.» Yael was in Israel in early October 2023, visiting her family and hoping to see Edan. On the morning of Oct. 7, she spoke with Edan, who said that he was seeing «terrible stuff,» but he assured her that he was safe. Then he was taken hostage.
On Nov. 30, 2024, more than a year after Alexander was captured, Hamas released a video of Alexander speaking in Hebrew and Arabic. Alexander, like other hostages forced to make propaganda videos, delivered messages about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-President-elect Donald Trump.
AFTER TRUMP THREAT, HAMAS REFUSES TO RELEASE MORE HOSTAGES WITHOUT PHASE 2 CEASEFIRE DEAL
Donald Trump, is shown photos of Edan Alexander by his mother Yael Alexander at Ohel Chabad Lubavitch on Oct. 7, 2024 in New York City. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
A few days after the video’s release, Adi Alexander, Edan’s father, spoke with «Fox & Friends First,» calling the film «very emotional» and «disturbing.» He said it was the first time they had seen a sign of life from their son since he was taken hostage.
Trump warned Hamas earlier this month to «Release all of the Hostages now, not later, and immediately return all of the dead bodies of the people you murdered, or it is OVER for you.»
«A beautiful Future awaits, but not if you hold Hostages. If you do, you are DEAD! Make a SMART decision. RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW, OR THERE WILL BE HELL TO PAY LATER!» Trump said.
Donald Trump is seen posing with a photo of Edan Alexander on Oct. 7, 2024 in New York City. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum said Friday that it «wholeheartedly welcomes the return of every hostage — whether they come home for rehabilitation or burial.»
«The return of any number of hostages must only be the beginning of an immediate and comprehensive deal to secure the release of ‘all hostages,’» it added. «As President Trump has assured our families and the world, and as he has stated time and again, the return of all hostages is a top priority for his adminsitration. His commitment to bringing our loved ones home has given us hope during this darkest of times.
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«As of today, 59 hostages remain,» the group also said. «We pray every single day for a deal that brings every one of them home, immediately.»
Fox News’ Yael Rotem-Kuriel, Trey Yingst, Rachel Wolf and Stephen Sorace contributed to this report.
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