Taiwan Intensifies Resistance to PRC Political Warfare

The Jamestown Foundation  |  Matthew Fulco

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te has significantly intensified countermeasures against the People’s Republic of China’s political warfare and espionage operations to protect national security. Since Lai introduced a 17-point national security plan in March 2025, Taipei has aggressively prosecuted military espionage, deported subversive Chinese influencers, and restricted travel to the mainland.

These administrative actions bypass the opposition-controlled Legislative Yuan, where the Kuomintang and Taiwan People’s Party have repeatedly stalled domestic defense budgets and military readiness initiatives. Espionage indictments rose to 64 in 2024, with military personnel comprising two-thirds of the defendants, including cases involving leaked secrets from elite combat brigades. To mitigate these vulnerabilities, Taipei banned officials from attending Beijing's World War II anniversary parade and barred local government personnel from the united front-led Straits Forum. These low-risk law enforcement measures allow Taipei to counter grey-zone subversion under the Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area without escalating military tensions.

Comment

Countering Chinese intelligence operations requires a shift from passive detection to active disruption of human intelligence networks. Beijing's Ministry of State Security increasingly exploits civilian-military integration to bypass traditional counter-intelligence screens. Democratic nations facing grey-zone coercion must pair legal frameworks like the Anti-Infiltration Act with robust cyber-forensics to secure compromised supply chains. These systemic safeguards ultimately determine the resilience of joint operational command structures during a high-intensity conflict.

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