Lai Ching-te

One-Day Uptick in Chinese Military Activity Observed After Lai Transit

Brian Hioe
China launched another set of military drills after vice president William Lai returned from his trip to the US and Paraguay. Lai’s trip involved a stopover in San Francisco and New York City. Though the ostensible main purpose of the trip was to attend the presidential inauguration of Paraguayan president Santiago Peña, there was greater attention to the sensitivity of Lai’s transit through the US, given the possibility of a reaction from China...
August 2023EnglishInternationalPoliticsRegional Tensions6 min read

As China Uses Lai Trip as Pretext for Exercises, Will the Drills be Blown Out of Proportion Internationally?

Brian Hioe
The Chinese government has announced that it will conduct military exercises in the East China Sea starting today until the 14th, in an area approximately 500 kilometers away from Taiwan. Yesterday morning, the Zhejiang Maritime Safety Administration announced a no-sail order lasting from 12 PM today until 4 PM on August 14th in the area the exercises are slated to take place...
August 2023EnglishInternationalPoliticsRegional Tensions6 min read

DPP Emphasizes Continuity for 2024 Elections at Party Congress on Sunday

Brian Hioe
The DPP held its party congress on Sunday at the Grand Hotel. This took place on the same day as the rally organized by former NPP chair Huang Kuo-chang and streamer Holger Chen on Ketagalan Boulevard. As no representative of the DPP was present at the rally, which all pan-Blue presidential candidates attended, this led to DPP party members being derided by Huang as off enjoying air conditioning while attendees at the rally toiled in the heat. Though the rally framed itself as non-partisan, given that all pan-Blue presidential candidates were present, the rally is largely read as pan-Blue...
EnglishJuly 2023Politics6 min read