Taiwan’s president William Lai has marked his first year in office with an offer of dialogue to Beijing and a warning that the self-governing island must strengthen its defences.
Mr Lai said he wanted co-operation, but it must be a dialogue of equals, free of coercion.
“I, too, am committed to peace. Because peace is priceless and war has no winners. But when it comes to seeking peace, we cannot have dreams or illusions,” he said.
“Taiwan is happy to have exchanges and co-operation with China as long as there is reciprocal dignity. Using exchanges to replace hemming in, dialogue to replace confrontation.”
Beijing, which claims sovereignty over Taiwan and describes Mr Lai as a separatist, has stepped up military drills around the island since he took office last year.
Mr Lai has taken a more assertive approach to cross-strait relations than his more predecessor Tsai Ing-wen, initiating a security crackdown on advocates for closer ties with the mainland.
His government last March deported three Chinese women, all of whom were married to Taiwanese men, for advocating unification with the mainland by force.
Tens of thousands of opposition supporters demonstrated in the capital Taipei last month, accusing Mr Lai of attempting to initiate a dictatorship and to eliminate democratic freedoms.
He has seen his approval rating fall as he struggles with a parliament where his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) does not command a majority, with added pressure in the form of an uncertain geopolitical landscape.
The United States has long been Taiwan’s strongest unofficial ally, but Donald Trump has accused the island, which leads the world in producing advanced semiconductors, of “stealing” the US‘s microchip industry.
Mr Trump announced a 32 per cent “reciprocal” tariff on Taiwan before suspending it for 90 days, along with those on most other countries.
On Tuesday Mr Lai played down the implications of Mr Trump’s action, which has fuelled fears on the island that the US president could abandon Taiwan as part of a grand bargain with Beijing.
“There are bound to be frictions between friends, but they can eventually be reconciled,” Mr Lai said.
“Even if there are differences of opinion, as long as there is a foundation of trust and sincere dialogue, they can understand each other better and deepen their friendship.”
Mr Lai said the Taiwan government would support firms adversely affected by the tariffs.
He also announced the establishment of a sovereign wealth fund to help companies expand globally as part of an effort to counteract Beijing’s campaign to discourage its trading partners from doing business with Taiwan.
Mr Lai extended an olive branch to the opposition, announcing that he would instruct his national security team to brief the chairs of the main opposition party, the Kuomintang (KMT) and the smaller Taiwan People’s Party (TPP).
The KMT said that one briefing would not solve the island’s problems, but it acknowledged that the president had taken “a small step” towards easing frictions.
“We also hope that president Lai will have more courage and take a big step to stop judicial persecution and political hatred,” the party said.
The KMT, which favours a warmer relationship with Beijing, holds most local government positions as well as controlling the national parliament with the help of the TPP.
Mr Lai’s DPP needs to win six seats to regain a parliamentary majority and it has used Taiwan’s expansive electoral recall legislation to attempt to unseat 30 KMT legislators.
The KMT targeted 15 DPP legislators for a recall vote, but its campaign ran into controversy amid reports that party activists had forged the signatures of dead people in the petition.
