logo
episode-header-image
Oct 2023
46m 31s

Drum Tower: What does it mean to be Taiw...

The Economist
About this episode

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, many have worried: is Taiwan next? China is giving Taiwan a terrifying choice: unify with China, or face war. People in Taiwan want neither of these.

For this special four-part series, David Rennie, The Economist’s Beijing bureau chief, and Alice Su, our senior China correspondent, ask whether Taiwan can preserve its freedoms and decide its own future.

In this first episode, they explore how Taiwan’s divided and changing identity impacts how close Taiwanese people want to be to China. They meet Chen Yao-chang, a doctor turned novelist, whose idea of what it means to be Taiwanese has changed in recent years.

Sign up for Economist Podcasts+ now and get 50% off your subscription with our limited time offer. If you’re already a subscriber to The Economist, you’ll have full access to all our shows as part of your subscription.

For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.



Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Today
Emission creep: a contentious COP closes
<p>It is telling and troubling that the annual climate talking-shop’s <a href="https://www.economist.com/international/2025/11/22/cop30-ends-with-a-whimper?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownote ... Show More
25m 51s
Nov 21
Flee country: Britain seeks to slash migration
<p>Britain’s home secretary Shabana Mahmood proposed a big shift in <a href="https://www.economist.com/britain/2025/11/20/will-britain-copy-asylum-policy-from-a-place-with-poor-integration?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discov ... Show More
23m 22s
Nov 20
War graft: scandal engulfs Ukraine
<p>Pentagon officials are meeting President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv to discuss a <a href="https://www.economist.com/europe/2025/11/19/a-terrible-american-russian-proposal-to-end-the-war-in-ukraine?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_con ... Show More
25m 24s
Recommended Episodes
Sep 2023
How Taiwan Is Learning From Ukraine
Taiwan has long lived under the shadow of China’s desire to take over its territory. And as China’s economy and military have grown, so too has the threat of a potential invasion. What is Taipei’s strategy for defense and security, and how is it marshaling support from other coun ... Show More
45m 26s
May 2022
Is the U.S. Changing Its Stance on Taiwan?
<p>For decades, the U.S. has walked a careful line when it comes to Taiwan — vowing to protect the island from China, without saying exactly how far it would go to do that.</p><p>On Monday, that appeared to change.</p><p>Guest: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/david-e-sanger"> ... Show More
23m 25s
Apr 2023
China and Taiwan: A Torrid Backstory
<p>The posturing between the United States and China has been intensifying in recent weeks — China responded with condemnations and military drills after Taiwan’s president, Tsai Ing-wen, met the speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy.</p><p>Today, Edward Wo ... Show More
25m 4s
Jul 2023
PLA Invasion: Is Taiwan's Military Ready?
Paul Huang, Taiwan military expert and research fellow at the Taiwan Public Opinion Foundation, returns to ChinaTalk! Today he gives us an update on Taiwan’s military readiness, the PLA’s expansion, and whether Xi Jinping would really send it. If you missed his episode back in 20 ... Show More
47m 33s
Jan 2024
Taiwan après les élections : la guerre ? Avec Valérie Niquet | Entretiens géopo
<p>Les élections présidentielles - et législatives - taiwanaises se sont tenues le 13 janvier 2024 dernier. Elles ont été marquées par la victoire de Lai Ching-te (également connu sous le nom de William Lai), ancien vice-président de la République de Chine et candidat du parti dé ... Show More
25m 27s
Feb 2024
Why China Can’t Blockade Taiwan
<p>Dmitri Alperovitch talks with Ivan Kanapathy, a former US military attache to Taiwan, about the looming threat of Chinese invasion and why a Chinese blockade or quarantine of Taiwan is unlikely to succeed. They discuss the implications of the recent Taiwan elections on the isl ... Show More
53m 50s
Apr 2022
Taiwan’s View of the Invasion of Ukraine: A Conversation with Dr. Shen Ming-Shih
In this episode of the ChinaPower Podcast, Dr. Shen Ming-Shih joins us to discuss Taiwan’s views on the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the potential lessons Taiwan may learn. Dr. Shen begins by exploring what Taiwan’s defense community has learned and the inspiration Taiwan’s pe ... Show More
38m 10s
Aug 2018
Soft Power Seduction: China Lures Taiwan's Youth
Young Taiwanese entrepreneurs working in a start-up hub are offered attractive sweeteners. But this isn’t in California or even Taipei, it’s on the outskirts of Shanghai. The People’s Republic of China is setting its sights on Taiwan’s youth by encouraging them to relocate to the ... Show More
28m 11s
Aug 2022
Inside Taiwan, in the eye of a geopolitical storm
It’s been a tumultuous couple of weeks for Taiwan. After U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's controversial visit to the self-governed island last week, China followed up with several military drills over the Taiwan strait. While those drills have now stopped, tensions remain high b ... Show More
28 m
Jul 2023
US, China butt heads again on Taiwan
Despite a recent diplomatic push to reset relations with China, the Biden administration has now announced a weapons package worth as much as $345 million for Taiwan’s self-defense. Beijing has repeatedly demanded that the US stop the sale of weapons to the island. So, what is th ... Show More
37m 56s