China News Service, December 28th, comprehensive Taiwan media reports, on the 27th, Taiwan leader Tsai Ing-wen held a press conference after 744 days, announcing that starting from January 1, 2024, those born after January 1, 2005 Male, the compulsory service period was extended from 4 months to 1 year.

Taiwanese public opinion has criticized this reform a lot, and "vote for the DPP, young people go to the battlefield" has also become a common satire among young people in Taiwan.

Tsai Ing-wen.

Photo source: Photo by Du Yi, Taiwan Zhongshi News Network

Tsai Ing-wen: An extremely difficult decision

Young man: It's not all your fault

　　Tsai Ing-wen claimed at a press conference that extending military service is an "extremely difficult decision" and that "as long as Taiwan is strong enough, young people will not have to go to the battlefield."

　　The young people on the island did not buy into Tsai Ing-wen's rhetoric: "It's not all caused by you."

　　Some Taiwanese netizens bluntly said: "The question is not how long to serve, the question is why the military service has to be extended, and who caused it. Everyone knows the answer."

Some netizens satirized, "Voting for the DPP, young people go to the battlefield" "For the sake of the United States first, Taiwanese pay protection fees every year, eat pigs, and donate TSMC... But the old Americans don't think it's enough...".

Screenshot of comments from Taiwanese netizens

　　Previously, polls on the island also showed that as many as 65.2% of the people said they would not want to go to the battlefield if a war between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait went to war, and 70% of the people aged 20 to 29 were unwilling to go to the battlefield.

　　Ke Yuzhang, a professor of the Department of Public Administration and Policy at Jinan International University, said that those who opposed the "1992 Consensus" never came up with a decent proposition, they only clamored and opposed, and in the end they could only push the cross-strait situation to a corner; these Not only can people not come up with a decent proposition, but they can only rely on the extension of military service to strengthen their courage, claiming that as long as Taiwan is strong, young people will not have to go to the battlefield.

Behind the extension of military service,

What roles do "votes" and "Americans" play?

　　Some Taiwanese media analyzed that in order to win the support of Taiwanese for the extension of military service, the DPP authorities wrote a 26-page post in a lavish manner.

However, the salaries of ex-conscripts have increased significantly, and the service period has been included in the seniority of labor insurance. It is also proposed to enter the camp in installments in different years, and the idea of ​​completing both studies and service period in four years of college is clearly to please the conscripts and their families.

　　The "China Times" published an article stating that forcing college draftees to balance their studies with their military service is a short-term scramble, just for the 2024 election.

If this idea is to be feasible, the most likely way is for college students to use winter and summer vacations to serve as soldiers, which is equivalent to splitting the service period into installments. The soldiers trained in this way are not as good as the current 4-month military training service. How could the defense department promise?

Don't the authorities know that the plan is not feasible?

However, the research information is still released, with only one purpose, to reduce the impact of the 2024 "general election" on the DPP election.

This is a standard election calculation.

　　As for the conscription reform announced by Taiwan, the US White House spokesperson expressed "welcome" in reply to Taiwan's "Central News Agency" inquiry.

The spokesperson claimed that the United States will continue to assist Taiwan in maintaining sufficient self-defense capabilities in accordance with the "Taiwan Relations Act" and "One China" policy commitments.

　　Netizens on the island have complained about this, "It is clear that the United States is looking at the people of Taiwan as cannon fodder", "Taiwan's extended service period and the United States have stated that the DPP will complete the task of the master", "If you are sold, you will count the money for others", "It is okay to recruit soldiers to pretend Streamlining, changing the conscription to waste young people's precious youth, dreaming of the American dream and counting steamed buns?"

　　In this regard, some Taiwanese scholars have analyzed that the current actions of the Taiwan authorities can only temporarily relieve the pressure from Washington. It is believed that Washington will continue to target Taiwan's defense expenditures, military building plans, equipment procurement, tactics and tactics, and service periods in the future. item, conduct a "concern".

Data map: Taiwan Army cadet training screen.

Image source: Taiwan Zhongshi News Network

Prepare for war and avoid war?

Only peace can avoid war!

　　A comment in Taiwan’s “China Times” on the 28th directly pointed out that since the Tsai government came to power, it has continued to operate “anti-China protection Taiwan”; So easy, there is definitely a price to pay.

　　Zhang Yazhong, the principal of Sunwen School, also commented on the 28th that once the "extension of military service" is implemented, it is just a start, and Taiwan will have to pay more in the future to continue to purchase more weapons, which will also make Taiwan an arsenal for the United States.

　　"Prepare for war to avoid war" is a paradoxical thinking. How much armament and troops must be prepared to achieve the effect of "avoiding war"?

If Taiwan is determined to use the thinking of "preparing for war", then the future defense budget must be greatly increased, and "extending military service" for one year is definitely not enough.

　　Zhang Yazhong said that the people of Taiwan are very unfortunate. There is a leader who follows the lead of the United States and doesn't care about Taiwan's fate;

Cross-strait relations are a matter of life and death for Taiwan, but the DPP authorities will only use outdated methods such as "extending military service, increasing armaments, and relying on the United States" to deal with it, handing over Taiwan's future to the United States.

　　"The only way to ensure Taiwan's security is to create cross-strait peace," Zhang Yazhong said finally.