Lai's actions detrimental to island's economy

As the current leader of Taiwan, Lai Ching-te's words and actions are always in the spotlight, and his speech on Oct 10 has a negative bearing on cross-Strait ties. In conjunction with his "motherland fallacy" speech on Oct 5, Lai Ching-te deliberately seeks to sever the historical connection between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, using "Taiwan independence" as a political bargaining chip.

The substantial sale of military equipment to Taiwan has also fueled "doubts about the US" in the minds of the island's tax-payers. The US government recently approved about $567 million in military aid to China's Taiwan region, but its delivery is, as always, delayed. A recent study by the Cato Institute, a US think tank, pointed out that the US owes Taiwan military sales worth $20.53 billion. That means a huge amount of money has been totally wasted on military sales.

In his speech on Thursday, Lai once again pledged to enhance Taiwan's economy and elevate the standard of living of its people. If his statements hold true, he should recognize that maintaining stable cross-Strait relations is crucial for Taiwan's economic progress. Regrettably, Lai's actions are paradoxical as he is slowly eroding Taiwan's economic stability.

According to the mainland's official statistics, from January to August this year, the total import and export trade volume between the mainland and Taiwan increased by 9.2 percent year-on-year. Economic cooperation between the two sides is bringing huge opportunities and benefits, and any action that disrupts the stability of cross-Strait relations could have a negative impact on economic growth.

Wang Shacheng is director of the Taiwan Economic Research Institute at the Central University of Finance and Economics