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On the 16th Eastern time, Ma Ying-jeou criticized former US National Security Adviser O'Brien by name in a speech at his alma mater, New York University, saying that he would never welcome the idea of "weaponizing" Taiwan.
Ma Ying-jeou, who was very polite to the United States when he was in power, seems to have hardened this time, and was called "the first shot of anti-Americanism" by Taiwanese netizens.
Why did Ma Ying-jeou publicly criticize the United States at this time? What is the reaction of the parties?
Ma Ying-jeou's view
Ma Ying-jeou first attacked the United States for using Taiwan as a pawn and cannon fodder.
He accused O'Brien, a former White House national security adviser, of clamoring for "millions of Taiwanese armed with AK-47 rifles" to confront the mainland, which is a scorched-earth strategy that allows Taiwan to adopt street battles and urban warfare, and also allows Taiwanese to go to the battlefield to confront US strategic rivals, which is a typical proxy war.
The Taiwanese people do not welcome such an American personage who has completely no regard for the safety and well-being of the Taiwan people, and the US Government should also make a solemn statement on this.
Ma Ying-jeou's second viewpoint is that the "92 Consensus" is irreplaceable, that is, the "one-China principle" must be adhered to, and the two sides of the strait should carry out peace talks on the basis of the "one-China principle," and the United States and the West should support this.
Therefore, Ma Ying-jeou also believes that the Taiwan Strait issue and the conflict in Ukraine are not the same thing at all, because Russia and Ukraine are two countries, while the mainland and Taiwan are two regions of China.
Ma Ying-jeou's third point of view is that the DPP must be removed from the shelves, because the DPP is not only "relying on force to seek independence," but also a breeding ground for corruption.
For example, the "egg shortage" in Britain, the United States, and Japan has long since ended, and the "egg shortage" in Taiwan has lasted for more than two years, and it is still getting worse, and there are even phenomena such as "expired imported eggs" and "poisonous eggs".
This kind of disaster for the people's livelihood is caused by the corruption of the DPP authorities who take advantage of the opportunity to make profits, and it is also the evil result of the DPP authorities' poor level of governance, which does not take into account the people's livelihood and the economy, and only focuses on collusion with the United States.
In addition to the "lack of eggs," Taiwan also lacks water, electricity, land, labor, talent, vaccines, and medicines.
Why Ma Ying-jeou is "anti-American" at this time
Ma Ying-jeou's three major views can be said to have stung the United States and the Taiwan authorities, so why did Ma Ying-jeou fire the first shot of "anti-American" and "anti-green" at this time?
The first reason is that the likely time for the outbreak of a conflict in the Taiwan Strait is at this juncture.
On the one hand, the 2024 general election is still a few months away in Taiwan, and Taiwan is facing a choice between peace and war, prosperity and recession, and two prospects.
In order to prevent the people of Taiwan from suffering greatly from the chaos of war, Ma Ying-jeou must take a clear-cut stand against the DPP, because time waits for no one.
On the other hand, the United States has been exhausted on the battlefield in Ukraine, and now it has been dragged into the more complex Middle East region by Israel, and it is no longer capable of fighting on a "third front".
Of course, it is also possible for China to take advantage of the fact that the United States has no time to look westward to reunify Taiwan in one fell swoop, and Ma Ying-jeou certainly hopes for peace talks, and if it is reunification, it is very likely to be "one country, one system."
Therefore, Ma Ying-jeou hastened to remind the Taiwan people that the war was very cruel and that it was necessary to join the DPP as soon as possible, lest there would be no chance of even talks in the future.
The second reason is that China's power is beginning to surpass that of the United States.
In the past, we were more tolerant in the game between China and the United States, but now we have begun to counterattack the United States in an all-out way, and the distance between us and US planes and ships is getting closer and closer, which shows that we are not afraid of misfire; The cold treatment of high-level US officials' visits to China and the suspension of high-level exchanges between China and the United States show that we are not afraid of the "cold war" provoked by the United States.
When Ma Ying-jeou led Taiwan, China's strength was weaker than that of the United States, and the essence of Ma Ying-jeou's foreign policy was to hug the thigh of the United States, which was more than the US arms purchased during the Chen Shui-bian era.
Now that Chinese mainland has hardened, Ma Ying-jeou, as a politician, naturally sensed that the United States was already at a disadvantage, and had to discuss with China on many things.
The third reason why Ma Ying-jeou is "anti-American" and "anti-green" at this time is that public opinion in Taiwan has changed, and he wants to follow the trend and not be a person who moves against the trend.
According to the latest "2023 Cross-Strait Peace Survey" released by Taiwan's "Vision" magazine, 74.4% of respondents believe that the two sides of the strait should increase interaction, and the support rate of Democratic Progressive Party candidate Lai Qingde has fallen by 7%.
The disapproval rating of Tsai Ing-wen reached 53%, a new record during her second term, and the dissatisfaction with the team of Chen Chien-jen, the head of Taiwan's administrative body, reached a new high of 43.8%.
All parties have expressed their positions
After Ma Ying-jeou "fired the first shot against the United States," the statements of all sides were very different.
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which has been stung by the sting, has already jumped over the wall, and the Mainland Affairs Council of the Taiwan authorities has labeled Ma Ying-jeou as "deviating from the mainstream public opinion in Taiwan"; Wu Zhaoxie, the foreign affairs department of the Taiwan authorities, has vainly claimed that Ma Ying-jeou "went so far" to criticize "foreign friends" who "support Taiwan"; and Zheng Wencan, deputy head of the administrative organ of the Taiwan authorities, criticized Ma Ying-jeou for "seeking fish from the wood."
The higher the DPP jumps, the more it shows that Ma Ying-jeou's remarks have won the hearts of the people, and in addition, it is particularly necessary to pay attention to the fact that the criticized United States has not made a big deal of nonsense, and its attitude deserves our attention.
Jeremy Cohen, a professor at New York University School of Law, told Ma Ying-jeou that there have been voices in the US political arena reflecting on whether the conflict between China and the United States is in the interests of the United States.
Oriana Skylar Mastro, an expert on military issues between China and the United States, appealed in the New York Times on the 16th that the US government needs to maintain political neutrality on the Taiwan issue in order to safeguard US interests.
As a matter of fact, the changes in public opinion in the United States can already be seen from the visits of Kissinger, Bill Gates, and others to China
The Americans believe that excessively fueling the arrogance of "Taiwan independence" is not conducive to US interests.
It is true that this kind of thinking is not enough to get the United States to abandon the strategy of "using Taiwan to contain China", but we need to enlist the support of this part of the United States who are unwilling to get involved in a conflict in the Taiwan Strait.
In Foreign Minister Wang Yi's upcoming visit to the United States, the Chinese side clearly pointed out that Wang Yi will have exchanges with friends from all walks of life in the United States, and this move is to win the support of people of insight in the United States.
We have to admit that the United States is still very strong, and it is impossible for us to cut ties with all Americans, let alone put all Americans on the opposite side of us.
All in all, we appreciate the clear attitude of Mr. Ma Ying-jeou and other people from all walks of life on the island in opposing "Taiwan independence," and thank all friendly personages for their call for China's reunification.