Zheng Liwen's China Visit: Italian Expert Says China Uses KMT for Information Warfare

Zheng Liwen led a delegation to visit Jiangsu, Shanghai, and Beijing in China from April 7 to 12. Several Italian media outlets reported this news, and Aurelio Insisa today accepted an exclusive interview with the Central News Agency, interpreting the underlying meaning from the perspective of information warfare.

Insisa taught in Hong Kong for more than 10 years and has visited Taiwan many times for research. He is currently a senior researcher at the Italian Institute for International Affairs (IAI).

Insisa stated that Zheng Liwen's visit to China is a very important development for current cross-strait relations. Simply put, he believes this is first and foremost 'a victory for China in the information domain'. Many people in Europe are unclear about Taiwan's internal politics and often overlook key points, namely 'how Zheng Liwen's visit was organized and presented, whether to Taiwanese society or international audiences, the main theme of Zheng Liwen's visit echoed China's security narrative on Taiwan.'

Insisa explained that China intends to create the impression that the United States and the Trump administration are the root cause of tensions in the Taiwan Strait, and that the KMT leadership's rhetoric is identical to Beijing's, believing that the United States is the creator of the Taiwan Strait security problem, and President Lai Ching-te and the DPP government are accomplices. This is used to argue that the KMT is the party best able to guarantee peace in Taiwan and will not damage relations with Beijing.

Insisa believes that the DPP's continuous electoral victories and years in power have made it a victim of its own success, because voters are often forgetful. Many people no longer remember the KMT's period in power, or were too young to vote at the time. Therefore, the KMT's current strategy seems to be 'to turn back the clock to the period when former President Ma Ying-jeou was in power.'

However, Insisa analyzed that the cross-strait exchange policy promoted by the KMT might have been the mainstream voice in 2010, but later the Taiwanese people were not satisfied, which led to the Sunflower Student Movement in 2014 and the DPP's landslide victory in the 2016 presidential election.

Insisa also reminded that China's invitation to Zheng Liwen is a gain, as it can create an image of internal division in Taiwan. However, one cannot ignore that in the past decade or so, due to its primary election mechanism, the KMT has often elected deeply blue leaders who do not reflect the entire KMT political spectrum. Therefore, KMT chairpersons often express extremely pro-China stances, while grassroots members or other key figures may not. Many of former KMT Chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu's actions were also considered 'unrepresentative'.

Insisa said that from this perspective, China can achieve a short-term information warfare victory by inviting the KMT chairperson, but if it wants to control the entire KMT ecosystem or influence Taiwan's 2028 presidential election, the effect is highly questionable. The prelude to the 2028 election is still the local nine-in-one elections at the end of this year, which will also be an indicator for the DPP and the blue camp to adjust their strategies. (Edited by Chen Hui-ping) April 9, 2026.