Thread by @WilliamYang120

On the third day of his unprecedented trip to #China, I talked to @Monocle24 about the implication and impact of former #Taiwan President Ma Ying-Jeou's trip.

monocle.com/radio/shows/th…

"Ma is trying to show the Taiwanese public that he and his party are the only ones that can bring real peace to the Taiwan Strait and help to de-escalate tension. Whether this message can resonate with the Taiwanese public remains to be seen.

We know suspicion of Chinese aggression against Taiwan remains very high here.

" The percentage of people here identifying as Taiwanese has climbed in recent years and obviously, Ma's attempt to emphasize the 'Chinese-ness' shared by people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait almost seems detached from the reality here.

It also shows how little the KMT is keeping up with the political trend in Taiwan."

"All the renewed and growing military threats from #Beijing have essentially convinced a lot more Taiwanese people that the threat of a potential military conflict is rising and it is pushing more Taiwanese people away from the idea that having more dialogue and exchanges ...

... with China will help secure their peaceful lifestyle. Even if Taiwan is not initiating any provocative moves to trigger Beijing, China might still further their encroachment of Taiwan's sovereignty, international space or its safety."

"As the current president @iingwen is leaving office in a bit more than a year, the KMT does see a window of opportunity for them to potentially come back to power in 2024 following their sweeping victory at the local election last November."