Taiwanese president: If Trump prevents China from going to war, he deserves the Nobel Prize

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te said in an interview with a conservative American radio station that US President Donald Trump would deserve the Nobel Peace Prize if he could convince Chinese President Xi Jinping to permanently refrain from military aggression against Taiwan.

Lai was referring to Trump's comments in August that Xi had promised him that China would not attack Taiwan during his term in office. However, he stressed that China continues to increase its military activities in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, which he sees as a greater challenge to the entire international order.

Lai hopes that Trump will continue to support peace in the Indo-Pacific region.

He also recalled that Taiwan is increasing its defense spending to reach five percent of GDP by 2030 and emphasized the island's determination to defend itself.

When asked about direct communication with US presidents, Lai acknowledged that there are no formal relations between the countries, but that Taiwan nevertheless counts on US support.

(reuters, lup)