TAIPEI — Taiwan President Lai Ching-te asked China on Monday to stop its military and political threats, saying in his inauguration speech that peace is the only choice and that Beijing had to respect the choice of the Taiwanese people.

Mr. Lai, addressing the crowd outside the Japanese-colonial-era presidential office in central Taipei, repeated a call for talks with China, which views the proudly democratic island as its own territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring it under Beijing’s control.

“I also want to urge China to stop intimidating Taiwan politically and militarily, and to take on the global responsibility with Taiwan to work hard on maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and in the region, to ensure the world is without the fear of war breaking out,” he said. “We also want to declare this to the world: Taiwan makes no concessions on democracy and freedom. Peace is the only option and prosperity is our goal for long-term peace and stability.”

There was no immediate reaction from China, which repeatedly called Mr. Lai a “separatist” risking war in the run-up to his election in January.

Taiwan has faced pressure from China, including regular air force and navy activities near the island, since the election victory by Mr. Lai, 64, who is widely known by his English name, William.

Mr. Lai, who took over from Tsai Ing-wen having served as her vice president for the past four years, said people must be realistic about the threat and Taiwan must show its determination to defend itself.

“Fellow citizens, we have the ideal to pursue peace, but we must not have illusions,” he said. “Before China gives up using force to invade Taiwan, citizens must understand this: Even if we accept all of China’s claims and give up our sovereignty, China’s ambition to annex Taiwan will not disappear.”

Mr. Lai received loud applause after reiterating that the Republic of China — Taiwan’s formal name — and the People’s Republic of China are “not subordinate to each other,” a line Ms. Tsai also took.

Taiwan’s defense ministry, in its daily report on Monday about Chinese military activities in the previous 24 hours, said six Chinese aircraft had crossed the Taiwan Strait’s median line, which previously served as an unofficial boundary but that China says it does not recognize.

At least one of the aircraft got within 43 nautical miles (80 km) of the northern Taiwanese port city of Keelung, according to a map provided by the ministry.

In attendance at the ceremony are former US officials dispatched by President Joseph R. Biden, lawmakers from countries including Japan, Germany and Canada, and leaders from some of the 12 countries that still maintain formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, such as Paraguay President Santiago Peña.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken congratulated Mr. Lai, saying the United States looked forward to working with him “to advance our shared interests and values, deepen our longstanding unofficial relationship, and maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.”

FIGHTER JETS AND SING-ALONGS
Taiwanese fighter jets flew in formation over Taipei after Mr. Lai’s speech.

At the end of the ceremony, Mr. Lai and Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim, formerly Taiwan’s de facto ambassador to the United States, led the crowd in a sing-along to pop songs as they danced onstage with the other performers.

Mr. Lai wore a purple tie, representing a butterfly native to Taiwan, and a yellow pin on his lapel of mustard flowers, a common plant in fields across the island.

He received seals symbolizing his presidential power from the parliament speaker, including the seal of Republic of China and the seal of honor, both brought to Taiwan after the Republican government fled to Taiwan in 1949 after losing the Chinese civil war to Mao Zedong’s Communists.

Late Sunday, widely read state-backed Chinese newspaper the Global Times said Mr. Lai could become “more and more provocative” once he takes office.

“So in the long term, the state of cross-straits relations will not be optimistic,” it said in an online commentary.

Mr. Lai’s domestic challenges loom large too, given his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lost its parliamentary majority in the January election.

On Friday, lawmakers punched, shoved and screamed at each other in a bitter dispute over parliamentary reforms the opposition is pushing. There could be more fighting on Tuesday when lawmakers resume their discussions. — Reuters

BANGKOK — Thailand trimmed its economic growth forecast for 2024 on Monday despite a better-than-expected expansion in the January-March quarter, saying exports were projected to increase at a slower pace than previously thought due to external risks.

Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy grew 1.5% in the first quarter (Q1) from a year earlier, data from the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC) showed, beating analysts’ expectations for a 0.8% expansion in a Reuters poll.

In the final quarter of 2023, gross domestic product (GDP) expanded an annual 1.7%.

On a quarterly basis, GDP grew a seasonally adjusted 1.1% after a revised 0.4% contraction in the final quarter of 2023, avoiding a technical recession. Economists had forecast a 0.6% expansion from the previous three months.

Growth was driven by exports and private consumption and investment, but public investment and government expenditure contracted, the state planning agency NESDC said in a statement.

“Thailand’s economy rebounded in Q1 and we expect steady, if unspectacular, growth this year driven by a further rebound in tourism and strong government spending,” Capital Economics said in a note.

The NESDC now expects GDP growth of between 2.0% and 3.0% for 2024, slightly lower than its previous forecast of 2.2% to 3.2%. Last year’s growth was 1.9%.

The downgrade is due to high external risks, especially trade protectionism that is intensifying, geopolitical conflicts and volatility in the global economy, NESDC Secretary-General Danucha Pichayanan told a press conference.

Thailand’s economy has lagged regional peers as it confronts high household debt and borrowing costs as well as weak exports amid an uneven recovery in top trading partner China.

The strong first-quarter GDP numbers could weaken the government’s case for an interest rate cut, although new Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajira has said he is more worried about people’s access to finance than the level of interest rates.

For months, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has pushed for a rate cut, saying it would help the economy. The central bank has not bowed to the pressure, holding its key rate at a more than decade-high of 2.50%. The next rate review is on June 12.

The agency predicted exports in 2024 would rise 2.0%, lower than the 2.9% increase seen earlier.

Headline inflation was seen at 0.1% to 1.1%, lower than a previous forecast, and compared with the Bank of Thailand’s target range of 1% to 3%.

The NESDC forecast 36.5 million foreign tourist arrivals this year, up from the 35 million projected earlier.

Thailand received 13.16 million foreign tourists from Jan. 1 to May 12, up 39% year-on-year, with Chinese visitors topping the list at about 2.6 million. In pre-pandemic 2019, there were record numbers of nearly 40 million foreign tourists.

Last month, the finance ministry lowered its 2024 growth forecast to 2.4% from 2.8%, but said it might reach 3.3% if the government’s flagship 500 billion baht ($13.8 billion) household stimulus scheme is deployed in the fourth quarter as planned. — Reuters