President Lai warns countries in region ‘next’ if China attacksAFP, TAIPEIIf China were to take Taiwan, Beijing would become "more aggressive, undermining peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific and the rules-based international order," President William Lai (賴清德) said in an interview published today. "If Taiwan were annexed by China, China's expansionist ambitions would not stop there," Lai told Agence France-Presse in an exclusive interview at the Presidential Office Building in Taipei. President William Lai waves at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Nov. 30, 2024. The US does not need "to frame Taiwan as a bargaining chip in any discussions with China," he added. "In the context of US-China trade competition, China seeks far more from the US than the US does from China," he said.

Source: Taipei Times February 12, 2026 06:00 UTC