Lin Yu-chang: Don't Underestimate Importance, Undermining Taiwan Equals Undermining the World

（CNA reporter Yeh Su-ping, Taipei, 5th）Former DPP Secretary-General Lin Yu-chang, currently a visiting scholar at the Indo-Pacific Security Initiative think tank in Washington D.C., stated today that he recently attended a forum at the Global Taiwan Institute, where former national security officials from both the US Democratic and Republican parties unexpectedly mentioned that "a Taiwan crisis is a global crisis." Lin Yu-chang urged Taiwan not to underestimate its importance to the world, stating that undermining Taiwan equates to undermining the entire world. Lin Yu-chang posted on Facebook that the Global Taiwan Institute (GTI) recently hosted a wonderful public dialogue. He met an old friend, Ely Ratner, former US Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs. Lin Yu-chang explained that when he visited Washington D.C. for meetings in 2023 as Minister of Interior, Ratner was his most important counterpart and made significant contributions and assistance to Taiwan's full promotion of whole-of-society defense resilience. Lin Yu-chang stated that the forum moderator was Josh Rogin, a columnist for The Washington Post, primarily covering national security, foreign policy, and US-China relations. There were two speakers: the first was Ratner, then the US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs during the Biden administration, who was in charge of Taiwan's security affairs. Lin Yu-chang mentioned that the other speaker was Robert O’Brien, whom Taiwanese are more familiar with. O'Brien was the US National Security Advisor during Trump's first term; he is currently a member of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board, providing independent advice directly to US President Trump. Lin Yu-chang discussed that these two, one Democrat and one Republican, both strongly support and care about Taiwan. There was much content in the dialogue that day, but one point was particularly emphasized: "A Taiwan crisis is a global crisis!" Because if something happens in Taiwan, it would be far more severe than COVID-19 and the financial storm combined. Lin Yu-chang stressed that when everyone attaches such importance to Taiwan, Taiwan truly should not underestimate its importance to the world, and absolutely should not disparage itself. "To disparage oneself is to disparage the whole world!" (Editor: Chang Ruo-yao) 1150505. Stand with facts, every sponsorship you make is a force for protecting press freedom. Download CNA's "First-hand News" APP to stay updated with the latest news. The text, images, and videos on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, or publicly transmitted and utilized without authorization.