Illustration: Xia Qing/GT
On July 1, in the fourth lecture of his so-called "10 lectures on unity," Lai Ching-te devoted much of his speech to the topic of so-called "defense." He loudly promoted ideas like "all-out mobilization" and "defense resilience," in an attempt to fully transform the island’s military into an armed force for "Taiwan independence." By wrapping a politically manipulated and strategically misguided army in rhetoric surrounding "honor and dignity," he seeks to conceal his dangerous agenda of "seeking independence by relying on the US" and "pursuing independence through military buildup." However, "defense" issues are not empty promises to market military benefits, nor are they a political cover for an agenda of selling out Taiwan and appeasing the US. Lai’s elaboration of the military’s "mission" is just another vote-mobilizing ploy - an open act of political opportunism aimed at dragging Taiwan to the brink of war.
Lai stokes cross-Straits tensions by talking up "defense" issues to consolidate his core voter base and rally support for the "mass recall" campaign. His intentions are despicable. He deliberately pushes cross-Straits relations toward confrontation, linking "defense" topics with the so-called "mainland threat" to create an atmosphere of tension and stir up populist sentiment. In this speech, Lai repeatedly exaggerated the so-called "political and military intimidation" from the mainland, portraying Taiwan’s military forces as the "frontline fortress guarding Taiwan." He even cited so-called "constitutional" clauses to endorse the "legitimacy" of his "defense" policies. While this may sound convincing on the surface, in reality, he is intensifying and exploiting the public’s security concerns as a tool for vote-getting.
What’s more ironic is that while Lai stirs up hostility across the Straits, he simultaneously chants slogans about "uniting Taiwan." In truth, he is artificially deepening internal divisions on the island. He labels those in the blue camp who question the DPP’s "defense" policies as "pro-mainland," smearing rational dialogue as "appeasement," and fabricating the false impression that "only the DPP can protect Taiwan." This political maneuvering - turning "security into votes" and "crisis into opportunity" - has become the DPP’s standard playbook for handling any political crisis.
Lai talks up "defense reform," but his core aim is a premeditated "militarized social mobilization" designed to bind the people in Taiwan to his strategy of "seeking independence by relying on foreign support and through military buildup." In this speech, Lai spares no effort to cloak his so-called "defense reform" in warm, pleasant language. However, strip away the rhetoric, and its true direction is clear: step by step, pushing Taiwan toward a "quasi-wartime state." The so-called "all-out defense" essentially refers to the militarization of society, which involves instilling a sense of "enemy awareness" in the youth through the education system, the media’s long-term portrayal of "war as inevitable," and the establishment of "disaster response command centers" in grassroots communities, along with strengthening mobilization drills.
These practices are far from simple "defense policies"; rather, they constitute a comprehensive system of mobilization for war preparation. This mobilization is not aimed at making Taiwan "stronger," but rather at making Taiwan "more compliant" with the strategic plans of international anti-China forces, turning it into a link in their toolchain for "using Taiwan to contain China." As Taiwan’s military training content, weaponry, and even intelligence and communication systems increasingly rely on external forces, the so-called "defense autonomy" has become nothing more than a slogan. Locking Taiwan’s future into a script of external intervention is the most dangerous political scheme of the DPP, which seeks to militarize and politicize Taiwan society under the guise of "reform" and forcibly incorporate the so-called "public will" into a trajectory of "total war mobilization."
In this lecture, Lai particularly emphasized the "glory of soldiers" and the need to "respect soldiers," claiming that policies such as "priority boarding for military personnel" and "discounts in shopping malls" will be introduced. At first glance, these appear to improve treatment, but in reality, they are a way to lure the military under the guise of sweetened incentives. He shows no concern for the current situation of Taiwan’s military and does not discuss their combat readiness challenges; instead, he was merely engaging in cheap emotional mobilization. From forcibly placing the literati politician Koo Li-hsiung in a position of "defense chief" to accepting retired US military officials as advisors participating in the "Han Kuang exercises," the professionalism and neutrality of Taiwan’s military have been systematically undermined. Soldiers are increasingly being mobilized to undertake the mission of "resisting China" imposed by the Lai authorities. Lai’s ultimate goal is to create a controllable, usable, and sacrificial armed force for "Taiwan independence" to serve his delusions of separatism. This is not only a betrayal of Taiwan’s military but also a sellout of Taiwan’s future.
Lai talks a lot about "defense," which seems glamorous but is, in fact, hypocritical - packaging dangerous political mobilization in lies. The people on the island want peace, not war mobilization; they want stability, not armed conflict. Deception will eventually be exposed, and the truth will come to light. Lai’s lecture on "defense" is nothing more than a massive scam wrapped in political packaging.
原文地址：http://en.people.cn/n3/2025/0702/c90000-20335092.html