TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Kuomintang Chair Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) said Wednesday that Taiwan should avoid committing itself exclusively to either the US or China and should not be forced to take sides between the two powers.

Speaking ahead of an upcoming KMT–CCP forum in China, Cheng said that while Taiwan is “indebted” to the US, China should be regarded as a “relative,” per CNA. She added that because China would not “attack its own people,” Taiwan need not choose between the US and China.

Citing comments by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer that the UK would not be forced to choose between the US and China, Cheng said Taiwan faced a similar situation. She also urged the Democratic Progressive Party to stop viewing the KMT as an enemy and instead treat it as a political competitor.

The DPP sharply criticized Cheng’s remarks, focusing on her characterization of China. The party’s China Affairs Department said Cheng’s comments reflected emotional projection and misplaced political expectations toward the CCP rather than concern for Taiwan’s security, freedom, and democracy, per Newtalk.

The department said China’s stated goal of unification means placing political trust in China would risk drawing Taiwan into the CCP’s strategic control. It called on the KMT to clarify whether it had already accepted conditions set by Beijing and questioned why the party has opposed increases in defense spending.

DPP Legislative Caucus Director Chung Chia-pin (鍾佳濱) said that with China repeatedly sending military aircraft toward Taiwan, people in Taiwan view China as an “enemy,” not a “relative,” per SETN. He said such a characterization would only be possible if the military pressure ceased.

DPP Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) went further, saying that if Cheng viewed China as a “relative,” then she might also view Taiwan as her “enemy,” per Liberty Times. He pointed to Beijing’s repeated threats of force and efforts to isolate Taiwan internationally.

Chung also criticized Cheng’s description of the US as a benefactor, saying the KMT should not simultaneously warn that US arms sales could destabilize cross-strait relations, per ETtoday. He accused Cheng of fostering distrust toward the US.

Cheng’s comments also drew criticism from within the KMT. Sun Yat-sen School president Chang Ya-chung (張亞中) condemned her depiction of the US as a benefactor and called for her to retract the statement, per UDN.

Chang said US policy toward Taiwan has historically been driven by US interests, citing examples such as when the US abandoned the ROC as it was losing the Chinese Civil War, declining to defend frontline islands such as Kinmen, and applying trade pressure on Taiwan. He argued Taiwan has long been treated as a tool in US China policy.

Chang added that if Cheng truly viewed the US as a benefactor, the KMT should not question special defense budgets. He accused Cheng of having an overly simplistic understanding of international politics.