CNN interviewed President Tsai Ing-wen

 CNN's Will Ripley conducted an exclusive interview with Taiwan’s president Tsai Ing-wen in Taipei on October 26, 2021.   This is the first time in two years that President Tsai accepted a face-to-face interview.   The interview covered a wide range of topics.   President Tsai confirmed the presence of US military trainers on the island.    President Tsai’s remark brought global attention.    During the interview, President Tsai Ing-wen said Taiwan was a "beacon" of democracy that needed to be defended to uphold faith worldwide in democratic values.  "Here is this island of 23 million people trying hard every day to protect ourselves and protect our democracy and making sure that our people have the kind of freedom they deserve," she said.    Tsai wouldn't say exactly how many US military personnel are on the island at present but said it was "not as many as people thought."   "We have a wide range of cooperation with the US aiming at increasing our defense capability," she said.  Tsai stressed the need to expedite Taiwan's military reforms to improve the country's ability to defend itself.   She reasoned that given Taiwan's smaller military relative to China, the key is to develop its asymmetric warfare capabilities.    In response to a question on Taiwan's current state of readiness, Tsai said, "We are trying to make ourselves stronger in every aspect, including military capabilities and our international support

Speaking to CNN, Tsai called on regional democratic partners, including Japan, South Korea and Australia, to help support the island.  "When authoritarian regimes demonstrate expansionist tendencies, democratic countries should come together to stand against them. Taiwan is on the front lines," she said.   Tsai also warned that the "threat from China is increasing every day" but emphasized that she would be willing to have direct talks with Chinese Chairman Xi Jinping in which they could "sit down and talk about our differences." Tsai said the goal of such talks would be to have an arrangement in which the two countries could "co-exist peacefully."