Erik Prince Calls Taiwan's Men "Soy Boys"
Interview of Blackwater Founder Suggests Taiwan Create Homeland Defense
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23 February 2025 (Sunday)
Erik Prince Calls Taiwan's Men "Soy Boys"
Interview of Blackwater Founder Suggests Taiwan Create Homeland Defense
By Wendell Minnick (Whiskey Mike) 顏文德
TAIPEI - The legendary founder of Blackwater, Erik Prince, has publicly suggested that Taiwan must build a robust homeland defense capable of stopping a Chinese invasion in its tracks.
But Prince doesn’t sugarcoat his assessment. He likens much of Taiwan’s military personnel to “soy boys”—unfit for combat—and casts doubt on whether there’s sufficient political will to build a real deterrent.
It’s a blunt diagnosis—and one I’ve echoed before.
In my opinion pieces A Place Calling Itself Taiwan: How Did Taiwan Go From Fortress Formosa to Fantasy Island?and Taiwan’s Lost Military: Identity Crisis or Just In Denial?, I made the same hard comparison. The shift from a hardened fortress to a society enamored with illusions has been as cultural as it has been strategic.
Prince isn’t talking out of his ass.
After the 2004 assassination attempt on President Chen Shui-bian, Blackwater was brought in to train the Presidential Guard under the Special Services Center (SSC), part of Taiwan’s National Security Bureau (NSB).
I know this firsthand. I assisted Blackwater’s representative, Paul Behrends, when bureaucratic resistance from the Ministry of National Defense (MND) threatened to derail the operation. I was just a journalist—but I crossed a line, stepping into the role of a participant. I was never paid, but it was a serious breach of journalistic ethics. I admit that without excuse.
Prince has returned to Taiwan since then—recently, in fact—meeting with local military leaders. He hasn’t forgotten Taiwan. The question is, has Taiwan forgotten what it takes to survive?
This wasn’t hearsay. The interview that sparked this conversation was conducted by Hillsdale College President Larry Arnn, and Prince’s words deserve more than a headline—they deserve action.
“Taiwan soy boys” begins at 7:20 minutes.
