Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te called on his party to resist Beijing's pressure and prevent democratic Taiwan from becoming "China's Taiwan" during the Democratic Progressive Party's annual congress on Sunday. Speaking partly in Taiwanese, Lai warned that Taiwan must remain highly vigilant against China's escalating "legal warfare," pointing to Beijing's recent ethnic unity laws as an infringement of Taiwanese sovereignty. Lai stressed that Taiwan is already an independent nation that is not subordinate to the People's Republic of China.
Addressing party members in Taipei, Lai urged them to stand on the frontline against Chinese pressure. Highlighting his administration's economic record as the party marks ten consecutive years in power, Lai noted that Taiwan ranked fourth globally in the 2026 IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook, improving from 14th place in 2016.
To counter regional security threats, Premier Cho Jung-tai announced that the government has proposed a NT$780 billion special military procurement budget alongside a NT$210 billion drone program, while establishing a cross-agency platform to combat transnational repression. China's Taiwan Affairs Office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.