Nearly one in two Australians support Australia sending troops to defend Taiwan in the event of an invasion by Beijing, according to a new poll.
That’s a much higher percentage of the population than Japan or the United States, where about one in three respondents supported sending local troops, according to YouGov’s online poll commissioned by the University of Sydney’s Center for American Studies.
A YouGov survey, conducted from 5 to 9 September, asked 1,068 Australians, “To what extent would you agree that Australia would respond if China attacked Taiwan? ?” I asked.
Nearly half (46%) of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that Australia should “send troops to help the United States defend Taiwan”, with 18% strongly agreeing. .
On the same question, 25% of respondents disagreed, 9% of whom strongly disagreed. The rest did not commit to either position.
In a survey conducted in Japan, 35% of 1,015 respondents agreed or strongly agreed with sending Japanese troops to help the United States defend Taiwan, while another 29% opposed or strongly agreed. I strongly objected.
Regarding the United States, 33% of the 1,066 respondents supported or strongly supported sending US troops to defend Taiwan, while 31% opposed or strongly opposed it.
Respondents in all three countries generally support the Western response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which would isolate China economically through sanctions should the CCP invade Taiwan. His 61% of Australian respondents were also in favor of such measures.
More than half of Australian respondents (53%) supported supplying arms to Taiwan. However, 38% of his respondents thought Australia should not be involved at all.
Xi Invades Taiwan, Possibility of Passing Responsibility
The poll comes after Chinese President Xi Jinping said at the 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) that the regime would never abandon the use of force to achieve “unification” of Taiwan. The communist regime has long been considered a rebellious state.
“We never promise to renounce the use of force. We reserve the option to take all necessary steps,” he said in Beijing at the opening of parliament.
Communist leaders may launch an invasion of Taiwan after Congress to shift blame for the regime’s economic turmoil, according to Chinese economic analyst Antonio Gracefo.
“he [Xi] You can’t really do anything about the economy. The economy is in such bad shape that there is no way he can fix it. He can’t end COVID, so I am very concerned that the only thing he can really do after Congress is invade Taiwan. Epoch Times, Oct. 21.
“All they have to do is start a war, and then they can blame the war for all their problems. It’s not because of that, it’s because of that war.”
In response to the situation, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida signed a joint security agreement. (pdf) In Perth on 22 October, they will discuss “contingencies” that threaten national security interests amid growing concerns over China-Taiwan tensions.
“Japan sees Australia as a special strategic partner at the core of cooperation among like-minded Japan, Australia, India and the United States,” Kishida said. statement the day before the meeting.
Reasons for Australia’s ‘awakening’: Taiwanese expert
YouGov’s survey is not the first to show concern among Australians over Beijing’s expansion into the Pacific.
An August survey by the Australian Institute of International Security Affairs found that nearly half of Australians believe the Chinese Communist Party will mount a military attack on Australia. Almost 1 in 10 Australians think China will soon attack Australia, whereas only 1 in 20 Taiwanese believes China will soon attack Taiwan. .
Dr. David Yotarn Lee, professor at the Graduate School of Development Studies, National Chengchi University in Taiwan, believes there are two main reasons why Australians have “woke up” to the threat from Beijing.
First, Australia has been subject to stronger economic sanctions by China than Japan or the United States since the COVID-19 pandemic, including trade restrictions on Australian wine and beef.
“The Chinese Communist Party’s crackdown on Australia over the past two years [has made] Australians should wake up,” Lee told the Epoch Times in an interview in Chinese.
The second reason is the Chinese Communist Party’s “gnaw” operation targeting Pacific island nations, particularly the Solomon Islands, which assist Chinese security forces in conducting training for the Solomon Islands police. has signed a controversial security pact with Beijing.
“This has also shocked Australia and the United States, because the Pacific island nations have been cooperating with the United States and Australia for a long time, but the Chinese Communist Party is trying to buy these countries with foreign propaganda and money. from,” Lee said. “That’s why Australia is waking up so early.”
“We are very pleased that the Australian people have responded in this way.”
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