“I support you,” Taiwanese president tells sailors on combat-ready warship

By Ben Blanchard

PENGHU, Taiwan (Reuters) – Taiwan President Lai Ching-te told sailors aboard a combat-ready warship at a major base in the Taiwan Strait on Friday that he supported them, thanking them for safeguarding Taiwan’s security at a time of heightened tensions with Beijing.

China, which claims democratically-ruled Taiwan as its own territory despite strong objections from the Taipei government, hates Lai as a “separatist” and staged war drills around the island in May, shortly after he took office.

Speaking to sailors aboard the Cheng Ho warship at the Magong base on the Penghu Islands in the Taiwan Strait, Lai said the navy places great importance on teamwork.

“As Commander-in-Chief of the three services, I want to stress that the government will support you all,” he said, in a message broadcast throughout the ship by loudspeaker.

The Cheng Ho – named after a Chinese admiral and explorer of the Ming Dynasty – is a warship built in Taiwan based on the design of the American Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigates.

An operational RIM-66 Standard missile stood ready in its launcher at the ship’s bow as Lai spoke on board.

Addressing officers shortly afterward at a luncheon on the base, Lai said the government was committed to further improving the armed forces’ weapons.

Penghu is also home to a major air base, from which Taiwanese Air Force planes regularly take off to shadow Chinese military aircraft and warships operating around Taiwan.

Lai reviewed soldiers at an air defense facility near the air base, watching an exercise with a fixed, dual-mount Stinger surface-to-air missile, designed for close-in defense.

The Chinese military has previously released a video of the Penghu Islands that appears to show them being captured by its air force, in what Taipei has described as “cognitive warfare.”

Penghu, a summer tourist destination for its beaches and crystal-clear waters, is close to Taiwan’s southwest coast, unlike the Taiwan-controlled Kinmen and Matsu Islands, which are just off the Chinese coast.

Lai has repeatedly offered to negotiate with Beijing, but his proposal has been rebuffed. He believes that only the Taiwanese people can decide their future.

(Reporting by Ben Blanchard)