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Is Taiwan ready for war?

Our weekly podcast on China. This week, the third episode of our four-part series examines the worst-case scenario for Taiwan: an invasion by China

Anti-landing spikes on the Kinmen beach in Taiwan
image: Imago
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What if China were to invade? For the third episode of our four-part series, we look at the worst-case scenario for Taiwan—armed conflict with its neighbour.

David Rennie, The Economist’s Beijing bureau chief, and Alice Su, our senior China correspondent, meet Jack Yao. He is a Taiwanese barista who volunteered in Ukraine. Now he’s getting ready for the day when he might need to defend his own homeland. But he’s rare among Taiwan’s young people in that he takes the threat of war seriously.

Our hosts also speak with Jeremy Page, our Asia diplomatic editor, about how an invasion of Taiwan by China could start and end. His special report this week examines China’s armed forces and true military capabilities. Runtime: 50 min

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