Beijing has condemned Taiwan’s ruling party for ordering a ban on DeepSeek in government departments and public schools, while calling for cross-strait cooperation on artificial intelligence (AI).
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The Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) of the State Council, which handles cross-strait relations and policies, also highlighted the global “popularity” of the AI model from the mainland start-up as it dismissed security concerns.
“The [mainland] Chinese AI model has gained widespread popularity among internet users worldwide,” TAO spokeswoman Zhu Fenglian said on Wednesday, encouraging Taiwanese to use the programme and support collaboration across the Taiwan Strait.
“The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government is driven by a ‘fear of China’ and ‘anti-China’ mentality. They are both afraid of and resentful toward products from the mainland, using national security as an excuse to impose bans,” Zhu said.
This approach was harmful to the interests of Taiwanese businesses and citizens, she warned, calling it “unreasonable and absurd”.
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The DPP’s “anti-intellectual” and “anti-China” stance had triggered growing dissent in Taiwan, she added.
Zhu’s comments come a week after Taiwanese authorities banned DeepSeek over “national security” concerns.