Taiwan's defence ministry said on Wednesday that 62 active-duty soldiers have residency permits for China. This has raised worries about potential security threats and questions about their loyalty to Taiwan’s military.

Taiwan’s Defence Minister, Wellington Koo, told lawmakers that military personnel will no longer be allowed to access classified or sensitive information. Although having such permits isn’t illegal in Taiwan, it could become a serious issue if tensions with China increase. "These permits do not equal citizenship," Koo said, adding that no soldiers were found to have Chinese passports or identity cards, which would require giving up Taiwanese citizenship. 

People who get these permits are allowed to live in mainland China. Some are concerned that these permits might be used as a way to escape if a conflict starts. China does not officially accept Taiwanese passports, but it gives special travel documents to Taiwanese citizens so they can visit or stay in mainland China. Taiwan separated from China during the civil war in 1949, but China still claims it as its own. Instead of direct military action, China has been using "grey zone" tactics—non-military ways like spreading propaganda and secretly trying to influence Taiwan—to weaken Taiwan’s defences and lower public confidence.

Many people in Taiwan have family connections to mainland China. About 2 million of Taiwan's 23 million citizens have roots there, especially those whose families came with Chiang Kai-shek’s Nationalist forces when Mao Zedong took over China. Even so, most people in Taiwan support the island’s current self-rule and want to keep a strong military. Taiwan has around 150,000 active soldiers and 1.6 million reservists. It has also increased the length of mandatory military training and invested in modern weapons.