Cheng Li-wun: 'Birds, Not Missiles' as KMT Skips Defence Budget
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- Cheng Li-wun, chairwoman of Taiwan's largest opposition Kuomintang (KMT), told reporters at Shanghai's Yangshan Port on April 9 that 'what should fly in the sky are birds, not missiles,' framing her China trip as a 'peace mission' to ease tensions Beijing has ramped up militarily.
- KMT lawmakers skipped Parliament talks on stalled plans to spend an extra US$40 billion (S$51 billion) on defence, drawing a rebuke from DPP defence committee co-chair Chen Kuan-ting, who accused the party of timing the boycott to coincide with Cheng's potential Xi meeting.
- Cheng Li-wun was scheduled to fly to Beijing on April 9 for a possible meeting with President Xi Jinping on April 10, though neither China nor the KMT has confirmed the sit-down.
- Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council urged Cheng to press Beijing to halt military harassment and respect the Taiwanese people's right to determine their own future — the message the Lai administration wants delivered to Xi.
- Taiwan's Defence Ministry detected 6 Chinese military aircraft and 8 warships around the island in the 24 hours before April 9, which DPP lawmaker Michelle Lin cited on Facebook as proof 'the Chinese communists' military threat against Taiwan is intensifying' even during Cheng's trip.
- China continues to refuse engagement with President Lai Ching-te, branding him a 'separatist,' while rejecting the KMT's call for talks only to Taipei, leaving Beijing's diplomatic channel pointing exclusively at the opposition.
Why it matters: A potential Xi-Cheng sit-down would hand Beijing a high-profile line to Taiwan's biggest opposition party just as Taipei weighs a US$40 billion defence boost. The KMT's boycott of those budget talks during Cheng's trip feeds critics who see opposition deference to Beijing, and the PLA's continued air and naval activity around Taiwan — 6 aircraft, 8 warships detected in 24 hours — shows the 'peace mission' has not slowed military pressure.
