United Daily News: National Defense Institute Taipei Security Dialogue — American Conservative Union Chairman Promotes “Trust in Trump” Doctrine

The following is the English translation of an article originally published in the United Daily News. See the original article here: https://udn.com/news/story/10930/9057154?utm

October 8, 2025, 13:13 — United Daily News / Reporter Cheng Chia-wen / Taipei

The Institute for National Defense and Security Research (INDSR) held the 2025 Taipei Security

Dialogue today. Attendees included INDSR Chairman Ho Shou-yeh (center front), Deputy

Minister of National Defense Po Hung-hui (fourth from left, front), former Australian Prime

Minister Scott Morrison (fourth from right, front), and former White House Political Director and

American Conservative Union (ACU) Chairman Matt Schlapp (third from left, front). (Photo by

Lin Hao-yi)

During the conference, Matt Schlapp, who delivered the opening keynote, emphasized that

media outlets such as CNN often spread claims that the Trump administration did not value

Taiwan — assertions he described as propaganda and false information. He criticized the Biden

era, stating that when the United States elects a weak president, America becomes weak, and

Taiwan is affected as well.

Schlapp stressed that through the 2024 U.S. presidential election, the American people

reaffirmed that the government cannot take away their freedom and that they reject globalism

and the so-called “woke” ideology, which he referred to as a “virus.” He said the Trump

administration understands the Chinese Communist Party and recognizes Beijing as a key

threat to freedom, though this does not mean Trump seeks war with China. According to

Schlapp, Trump called himself a “peace president,” while under Biden, the U.S. became

entangled in wars on two continents simultaneously.

Schlapp recalled that, even in his youth, he was aware of Taiwan’s strong anti-communist

stance and the unique relationship between the Taiwanese and American people. However,

over time, he has grown concerned that Taiwan’s standing in the minds of Americans has

changed, influenced by the Chinese Communist Party and its global propaganda campaigns

that reject human rights and freedom. He said CNN and other outlets often portray Trump in an

ugly and inaccurate way to make people believe that his administration no longer values

Taiwan’s interests.

Former Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison stated that this visit marked his third trip to

Taiwan since leaving office three years ago. He warned that if Taiwan were brought under Beijing’s authoritarian rule, no region would remain unaffected. The People’s Liberation Army

could then build air bases, deploy long-range missiles, and extend anti-access zones to the

Second Island Chain. If the U.S. failed to stop China from taking Taiwan, other regional

countries would have to accept Beijing’s dominance or even hegemony, further expanding

authoritarianism under China’s protection. Therefore, Morrison said, Taiwan’s importance

extends beyond itself — it must work with the U.S., Japan, and Australia to strengthen resilience

and deterrence to ensure Beijing understands that any act of aggression would have

devastating consequences.

Morrison also highlighted that during his tenure as Prime Minister, Australia pursued new

security collaborations such as the AUKUS (Australia–UK–US) security partnership. He

emphasized that preserving the status quo across the Taiwan Strait is essential for ensuring

Taiwan’s safety and maintaining peace and stability in the region — a stance widely supported

by the international community. This issue, he said, concerns not only the freedom and survival

of the Taiwanese government and its people, but also the shared commitment to a free and

open Indo-Pacific order.

(Photo: Former White House Political Director Matt Schlapp at the 2025 Taipei Security

Dialogue, by Lin Hao-yi)