Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te on March 13 pledged tougher measures to counter the infiltration and espionage activities from the Chinese communist regime.
Lai said the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has infiltrated Taiwan’s media, commentators, political party, armed force members, and police to carry out its campaign.
“What they are trying to do is to sow seeds of discord in our society, keep us occupied with internal conflicts, and cause us to ignore the real threat from outside,” Lai told reporters.
Lai said Beijing has “actively” plotted ways to “infiltrate and spy on” Taiwan’s military.
“By its actions, China already satisfies the definition of a ‘foreign hostile force’ defined by our Anti-Infiltration Act,” Lai said. “We have no choice but to take even more proactive measures.”
As part of the 17 countermeasures he laid out at the press conference, Lai announced plans to review legislation aimed at restoring the military trial system for active-duty personnel suspected of aiding the enemy, alongside expanding criminal law to make any “expressions of loyalty to the enemy” a punishable offense.
Lai said his government will implement a strict review of Taiwan visits or residency applications by Chinese citizens, and make “necessary adjustments” to the flows of money, people, and technology across the strait.
In addition, he said the government will issue reminders to Taiwanese actors and singers performing in China on their statements and actions, a response to what Taipei sees as an ongoing Chinese campaign to pressure pop stars into making pro-CCP comments.
Confronted by “increasingly severe threats,” Lai pledged to do the utmost to ensure that the democratic way of life for Taiwan’s 23 million residents remains intact, but he called on the public to “stay vigilant and take action.”
‘Rampant’ Espionage Activities
Taiwan’s defense ministry has unveiled the proposed amendment to the Criminal Code of the Armed Forces aimed at cracking down on the CCP’s espionage efforts targeting its military.
One of the defendants was identified as Chu Hung-i, a retired Army officer who frequently traveled to China for business following his retirement. According to a January statement from a district prosecutor’s office in Taiwan, during a visit to China in 2019, Chu established contact with a Chinese military intelligence officer, who promised him financial rewards for recruiting retired veterans in Taiwan.
In the following years, Chu managed to recruit six retired military officers and set up a political party called Rehabilitation Alliance, prosecutors said. During the party’s candidates’ campaign for parliamentary seats in last January’s elections, Chu received around $81,000 from the CCP, although none of his candidates were elected, according to prosecutors.
When the Party’s members ran for the parliament seats in last January’s election, Chu received approximately $81,000 from the CCP, according to prosecutors. None of his Party’s candidates were elected.
On March 12, the Defense Ministry also confirmed a case that involved a retired air force major who claimed to be working for a U.S. think tank. The retired major, surnamed Shih, allegedly persuaded an air force air intercept controller to hand over classified files in exchange for payment. Shih allegedly delivered the documents to his contacts in China for about $45,000, of which he shared about $6,000 with the serving officer, surnamed Hsu.
The leaked information related to Taiwan’s domestically developed air-launched Hsiung Feng III anti-ship missiles and Taiwan’s response to Chinese incursions into its air defense identification zone, the Defense Ministry said.