Hon Hai Precision Industry founder Terry Gou says he will run in Taiwan's presidential election next year as an independent candidate.

Gou said at a news conference in Taipei on Monday that the ruling Democratic Progressive Party needs to be brought down. He said that in the past seven years of the DPP's rule, it has led Taiwan toward the danger of war and that it has made mistakes in its domestic policies.

Gou is the founder of Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn, one of the world's largest contract manufacturers of electronic devices.

He is known in Japan for leading a takeover of major electronics maker Sharp in 2016.

Hon Hai has large investments in China and Gou is a major shareholder. During Monday's news conference, he said that if China threatens to confiscate Hon Hai's assets for not complying with its policies, he would reply, "Yes, please do it." Gou stressed that he has never been under China's control and does not follow its instructions.

Gou had sought to run as the candidate for Taiwan's largest opposition party, the Kuomintang, in the January election, but the party chose New Taipei City Mayor Hou Yu-ih. Gou once expressed support for Hou, but has been touring Taiwan in recent weeks on his own account.

The KMT said Gou's move was extremely regrettable. It also said it believes Gou will ultimately support the KMT and Hou and will work with them to bring down the ruling party.

According to elections regulations, Gou needs to gather about 290,000 signatures, which is 1.5 percent of all eligible voters, to qualify as an independent candidate.

The ruling DPP has named Vice President Lai Ching-te as its candidate. Another opposition force, the Taiwan People's Party, has chosen Ko Wen-je to run in the presidential race.

Analysts have noted that opposition votes could be split if Gou runs. Talks for cooperation among the opposition camps are expected to intensify as they aim for a change of government.