National identity

Main articles: Taiwanese identity and Chinese nationalism

Roughly 84% of Taiwan's population descends from Han Chinese who migrated from Qing China between 1661 and 1895. Another significant fraction descends from Han Chinese who immigrated from mainland China in the late 1940s and early 1950s. The shared cultural origin combined with several hundred years of geographical separation, some hundred years of political separation and foreign influences, as well as hostility between the rival ROC and PRC have resulted in national identity being a contentious issue with political overtones. Since democratization and the lifting of martial law, a distinct Taiwanese identity (as opposed to Taiwanese identity as a subset of a Chinese identity) is often at the heart of political debates. Its acceptance makes the island distinct from mainland China, and therefore may be seen as a step towards forming a consensus for de jure Taiwan independence.^[165] The pan-green camp supports a distinct Taiwanese identity, while the pan-blue camp supports a Chinese identity only.^[153] The KMT has downplayed this stance in the recent years and now supports a Taiwanese identity as part of a Chinese identity.^[166][167]
According to a survey conducted in March 2009, 49% of the respondents consider themselves as Taiwanese only, and 44% of the respondents consider themselves as Taiwanese and Chinese. 3% consider themselves as only Chinese.^[101] Another survey, conducted in Taiwan in July 2009, showed that 82.8% of respondents consider the ROC and the PRC as two separate countries with each developing on its own.^[168] A survey conducted in December 2009 showed that 62% of the respondents consider themselves as Taiwanese only, and 22% of the respondents consider themselves as both Taiwanese and Chinese. 8% consider themselves as only Chinese. The survey also shows that among 18- to 29-year-old respondents, 75% consider themselves as Taiwanese only.^[169]
In the latest survey conducted by National Chengchi University in 2014 and published in early 2015, 60.6% of respondents identified themselves exclusively as Taiwanese, 32.5% identified themselves as both Taiwanese and Chinese and 3.5% identified themselves as Chinese.

Percentage of Taiwanese residents who consider themselves Taiwanese, Chinese, or Taiwanese and Chinese according to various surveys.

Survey	Taiwanese	Chinese	Taiwanese and Chinese
National Chengchi University (January 2015)[170]	60.6%	3.5%	32.5%
TVBS Poll Center (October 2012)[171]	75%	15%	(not an option for this question)
TVBS Poll Center (October 2012)[172]	55%	3%	37%
Common Wealth Magazine (December 2009)[169]	62%	8%	22%
Research, Development, and Evaluation Commission, Executive Yuan (April 2008)	67.1%	13.6%	15.2%

Military

Main article: Republic of China Armed Forces

See also: Republic of China Military Academy

Republic of China Air Force Indigenous Defense Fighter

Republic of China Navy Kidd-class destroyers

Republic of China Army Thunderbolt-2000

The Republic of China Army takes its roots in the National Revolutionary Army, which was established by Sun Yat-sen in 1925 in Guangdong with a goal of reunifying China under the Kuomintang. When the People's Liberation Army won the Chinese Civil War, much of the National Revolutionary Army retreated to Taiwan along with the government. It was later reformed into the Republic of China Army. Units which surrendered and remained in mainland China were either disbanded or incorporated into the People's Liberation Army.
Today, the Republic of China maintains a large and technologically advanced military, mainly as defence against the constant threat of invasion by the PRC under the Anti-Secession Law of the People's Republic of China.^[103] From 1949 to the 1970s, the primary mission of the military was to "retake the mainland" through Project National Glory. As this mission has shifted to defence, the ROC military has begun to shift emphasis from the traditionally dominant Army to the air force and navy.
Control of the armed forces has also passed into the hands of the civilian government.^[173][174] As the ROC military shares historical roots with the KMT, the older generation of high-ranking officers tends to have Pan-Blue sympathies. However, many have retired and there are many more non-mainlanders enlisting in the armed forces in the younger generations, so the political leanings of the military have moved closer to the public norm in Taiwan.^[175]
The ROC began a force reduction program, Jingshi An (translated to streamlining program), to scale down its military from a level of 450,000 in 1997 to 380,000 in 2001.^[176] As of 2009, the armed forces of the ROC number approximately 300,000,^[177] with nominal reserves totalling 3.6 million as of 2005.^[178] Conscription remains universal for qualified males reaching age eighteen, but as a part of the reduction effort many are given the opportunity to fulfill their draft requirement through alternative service and are redirected to government agencies or defence related industries.^[179] Current plans call for a transition to a predominantly professional army over the next decade.^[180][181] Conscription periods are planned to decrease from 14 months to 12.^[182] In the last months of the Bush administration, Taipei took the decision to reverse the trend of declining defence spending, at a time when most Asian countries kept on reducing their military expenditures. It also decided to modernize both defensive and offensive capabilities. Taipei still keeps a large military apparatus relative to the island's population: defence expenditures for 2008 were NTD 334 billion (approximately US $10.5 billion), which accounted for 2.94% of GDP.

Republic of China Marine Corps Amphibious Reconnaissance and Patrol Unit

Republic of China Military Police is a separate branch in the armed forces. In the picture, this is a military policeman standing guard in Hsinchu Air Base.

The armed forces' primary concern at this time, according to the National Defense Report, is the possibility of an invasion by the PRC, consisting of a naval blockade, airborne assault, and/or missile bombardment.^[173] Four upgraded Kidd-class destroyers were purchased from the United States, and commissioned into the Republic of China Navy in 2005–2006, significantly upgrading Taiwan's air defence and submarine hunting abilities.^[183] The Ministry of National Defense planned to purchase diesel-powered submarines and Patriot anti-missile batteries from the United States, but its budget has been stalled repeatedly by the opposition-Pan-Blue Coalition controlled legislature. The defence package was stalled from 2001 to 2007 where it was finally passed through the legislature and the US responded on 3 October 2008, with a $6.5 billion arms package including PAC III Anti-Air defence systems, AH-64D Apache Attack helicopters and other arms and parts.^[184] A significant amount of military hardware has been bought from the United States, and, as of 2009, continues to be legally guaranteed by the Taiwan Relations Act.^[117] In the past, France and the Netherlands have also sold military weapons and hardware to the ROC, but they almost entirely stopped in the 1990s under pressure of the PRC.^[185][186]
The first line of defence against invasion by the PRC is the ROC's own armed forces. Current ROC military doctrine is to hold out against an invasion or blockade until the US military responds.^[187] There is, however, no guarantee in the Taiwan Relations Act or any other treaty that the United States will defend Taiwan, even in the event of invasion.^[188] The joint declaration on security between the US and Japan signed in 1996 may imply that Japan would be involved in any response. However, Japan has refused to stipulate whether the "area surrounding Japan" mentioned in the pact includes Taiwan, and the precise purpose of the pact is unclear.^[189] The Australia, New Zealand, United States Security Treaty (ANZUS Treaty) may mean that other US allies, such as Australia, could theoretically be involved.^[190] In practice, the risk of losing economic ties with China may prevent Australia from taking action.^[191] The United States, United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Canada, Chile, and Peru conduct maritime exercises in the Pacific Ocean every two years called RIMPAC. They are conducted to promote stability and to be able to respond in case of an armed conflict in the region – that includes an invasion of Taiwan by China.^[192]