Taiwan Sees China's Xi as Too Focused on Party Reshuffle for Any Attack
- Taipei assesses risk low regardless of Ukraine, officials say
- U.S. believes China watching its response to crisis in Europe
Xi Jinping on screen during an evening news program at a mall in Beijing.
Photographer: Noel Celis/AFP/Getty Images
Taiwan believes Xi Jinping is too focused on a key party meeting to extend his tenure as China’s leader to take military action now, regardless of what happens between Russia and Ukraine, according to two senior officials involved in security issues in Taipei.
The Taiwanese government has assessed the current risk of a Chinese attack to be low, even if the U.S. were to be distracted by a war in Eastern Europe, according to the officials, who asked not to be named because they weren’t authorized to discuss security matters publicly. Communist Party leaders were prioritizing domestic stability ahead of a twice-a-decade congress and wouldn’t take any action that could jeopardize Xi’s efforts to secure a third term, the officials said.