Lai under pressure at home, abroad on 2nd anniversary

TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) is caught in a squeeze as he marks his second year in office this week, facing pressure from opposition legislators at home and uncertainty over U.S. arms sales abroad. Opposition parties failed Tuesday (May 19) morning to impeach Lai for refusing to countersign an amendment passed by Taiwan's parliament (立法院), the Legislative Yuan, with 56 voting in favor and 50 against — short of the 76 votes required under Taiwan's constitution.

The impeachment proceedings were initiated by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT, 國民黨) and the Taiwan People's Party (TPP, 民眾黨) after Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) refused to countersign opposition-backed amendments to the Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures. The motion was put to a floor vote on the eve of Lai's two-year anniversary — following public hearings, committee reviews and investigative hearings that began in December.

But the greater pressure comes from Washington. U.S. President Donald Trump returned Saturday from a two-day summit in Beijing with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), where he told reporters he views a pending US$14 billion (NT$443 billion) arms package to Taiwan as "a very good negotiating chip." His comments raised concerns in Taiwan, which government officials sought to dispel.

Taiwan's representative to the U.S., Alexander Yui (俞大㵢), pushed back Sunday on CBS News' "Face the Nation," saying Taiwan doesn't "want a war." "That we're not subordinate to the People's Republic of China in any way at all," Yui said. "And that's maintaining our sovereignty, our way of life, our democracy, our vibrant economy, our high-tech production. That is what is meant by independence."

Yui said Trump heard "a lot about Taiwan" during the Beijing summit, "the problem is, he heard only their side of the story." Taiwan officials insisted U.S. policy on Taiwan has not changed, citing Secretary of State Marco Rubio's public statement during the Beijing summit that "there's no change in the United States' longstanding position in Taiwan."

U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson reaffirmed congressional support for Taiwan Sunday on Fox News, saying "China cannot just go take over land, and we're going to stand strong and resolute by that. I know the Congress will." Meanwhile, U.S. Senators Lindsey Graham and Dan Sullivan announced plans to introduce legislation imposing immediate economic sanctions on China in the event of an attempted invasion of Taiwan.

Graham said in an interview that aired Saturday on NBC News' "Meet the Press" that the proposed "preventive sanctions bill" would impose sweeping tariffs and economic penalties on Beijing as a deterrent against military action toward Taiwan. He said the U.S. should clearly warn Beijing that any attack on Taiwan would result in severe economic consequences.

The competing pressures underscore Taiwan's precarious position: Trump seeks leverage with Beijing, China seeks control of Taiwan, and Taipei seeks guarantees of U.S. support. According to Chinese state media, Xi warned Trump of possible "clashes and even conflicts" if the Taiwan issue isn't "handled properly."

President Lai said in a statement that "Taiwan will not provoke or escalate conflict, but it will also not relinquish its national sovereignty and dignity, or its democratic and free way of life, under pressure," calling China "the root cause of undermining regional peace and stability and attempting to change the status quo." ◼