TAIPEI, May 26 (AFP) - China poses an even greater threat to Taiwan if it has the state-of-the-art nuclear technology allegedly stolen from the United States, analysts and officials warned Wednesday. And even though Beijing is unlikely to use the weaponry against Taiwan, it could get tough with Washington in handling disputes over the nationalist island, they said. "Beijing could take a stronger military stance than it did during the 1996 Taiwan Straits crisis," Lin Yu-fang, professor of the Tamkang University's Graduate Institute of International Affairs and Strategic Studies, told AFP. China staged war games off Taiwan in 1995-96, firing ballistic missiles into nearby shipping lanes to intimidate the island during its first direct presidential elections. The crisis came to an end when two US aircraft carrier groups were sent into waters near Taiwan. A US Congress report released Tuesday accused China of stealing key US nuclear and missile secrets over the past two decades. Defense ministry spokesman Kung Fan-ding said Taiwan would not develop nuclear weapons to counter the perceived threat. "The Republic of China (Taiwan) has not developed nuclear weaponry, and the policy will persist," Kung said. But he conceded that "training programs against nuclear and biochemical attacks would be strengthened," as "Beijing still refuses to renounce the use of force against Taiwan" to bring about reunification. Professor Lin recommended that Taipei develop offensive weapons such as cruise missiles and submarines while acting to improve stalled ties with Beijing. "Stable cross-strait ties would be the guarantee of Taiwan's security," Lin said. The US report meant "Taiwan's bids to set up its own anti-missile capability would become ever more difficult," predicted Lin Cheng-yi, a researcher at the Academia Sinica's Institute of European and American Studies. Taiwan is considering joining Washington's controversial Theatre Missile Defense (TMD) program, which could cost the island more than nine billion US dollars. China has been infuriated by the prospect. Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan has described Taiwan as "the most important and sensitive" topic in Beijing-Washington ties. "The Chinese government would of course make a due and strong reaction to that," Tang said, referring to Taiwan joining the TMD. Defying China, the United States sold three PAC-III anti-missile batteries to Taiwan in 1993 which have been deployed to defend the greater Taipei area. But Lin Chong-pin, vice chairman of the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) which formulates Taipei's policy towards Beijing, said the greater threat may come from Chinese research into what he called "acupuncture warfare," involving such tactics as computer viruses and electronic magnetic pulses. "It is aimed at paralysing Taiwan's society before a comprehensive war would be launched," said Lin. The Cox espionage report in the US has put Taiwan on alert after it began civil contacts with China in the late 1980s. "It has been noticed that some mainland officials have visited some high-tech companies and research units here," MAC vice chairman Wu An-chia said. "The government will be more cautious than before in arranging visits in Taiwan." China has regarded Taiwan as a renegade province since the two were split at the end of a civil war in 1949.  