China 'more likely' to invade Taiwan in 2027, warns foreign minister

Taiwan's foreign minister has warned of a possible Chinese invasion in the year 2027 when Xi Jinping will be seeking a fourth term as president.

He said that Xi Jinping would want to take the focus away from domestic issues by making Taiwan the "scapegoat."

Joseph Wu made the statement in an interview with Sky News on Wednesday. He added that China is "more likely" to invade Taiwan in 2027. "To me, 2027 is a year to watch out," he said during the interview.

"In 2027, Xi Jinping is likely to go into his fourth term, and if, in his previous three terms, he cannot claim any achievement during his office, he might need to think about something else for him to claim as his achievement or his legacy," added the minister.

He also acknowledged that the status quo "might not last forever" and indicated that Taiwan might one day become an independent country or be assimilated by China.

China has ramped up economic, military, and diplomatic pressure on the island over the last few months.

China considers Taiwan to be its breakaway province. It has never ruled out the use of force to bring Taipei under its control, but since Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen took office in May last year, Beijing fears the democratic leader may seek independence for the self-ruled nation.

Taiwan has long warned Beijing against increasing its military activities in its airspace, but China has only stepped-up military activities in the past two years to force Taiwan to accept its rule.

China has argued that flying over and around Taiwan and Japan is legal and reasonable and insisted that they have never targeted any specific country or region during these manoeuvres.

The tensions between the two nations have flared up over the last few years. Taiwan has been on alert since Russia invaded Ukraine and believes that China could make a similar move.

The country lives under the constant threat of invasion and has taken several steps to strengthen its defence. It has now decided to extend mandatory military service from four months to one year to counter China. The plan will come into effect in 2024.