Taiwan's ruling party is fighting a move by the opposition to slash the culture budget, framing it as an attack on the island's only public broadcaster and its independent identity.

• Opposition parties (KMT and TPP) cut the culture ministry's budget by about NT$1 billion, targeting Taiwan's public television service.
• DPP lawmaker Wu Su-yao says gutting public TV would leave Taiwanese with no homegrown national channel, warning the alternative is watching China's state broadcaster CCTV.
• She cast the fight as cultural survival, arguing that erasing a nation starts with erasing its history and culture, leaving only China's voice on the world stage.
• The clash turned personal, with a KMT lawmaker mocking the DPP and Wu firing back that she and her allies are Taiwanese, not Chinese.

Outlook: The budget fight is set to sharpen the identity battle heading into Taipei's mayoral race and the next legislative showdown.