Taiwan's president used the island's National Day stage to pitch Taiwan as a calm, reliable player rather than a flashpoint — reassuring for allies, but paired with a blunt warning about Chinese pressure.

• Lai Ching-te said Taiwan seeks no dominance over anyone and makes keeping the peace its own responsibility.
• He warned that peace cannot rest on wishes alone, and that tolerance must not become an excuse for an aggressor to push further.
• China keeps squeezing Taiwan with military moves and gray-zone tactics aimed at changing the status quo in the Taiwan Strait.
• He framed Taiwan's resistance as a test for the rest of the world: whether force can override rules and strip people of the right to choose their own future.
• On the economy, the promise was practical: higher pay, lower taxes, more welfare, lighter burdens — plus thanks to troops, reservists, police, medics and civil defense for drills that add another layer of deterrence.

Outlook: Expect Taiwan to keep building up asymmetric defenses and courting international support while Beijing's military and gray-zone pressure continues.