President Chen Shui-bian's (
Both pro-independence and pro-China advocates can find in Chen's speech things to like and dislike. For example, the Taiwan Solidarity Union agreed with Chen's statement that "Taiwan is the Republic of China, and the Republic of China is Taiwan," but found it difficult to accept his proposition that "both sides use the basis of the 1992 meeting in Hong Kong" to seek possible schemes that are "not necessarily perfect but acceptable." The pan-blue camp in turn questions the possibility that Chen accepts the arrangement of "one country, two systems."
Of course, Chen will not accept such an arrangement. That is why he steered away from the terms "1992 consensus" and "1992 one China principle," and spoke instead of using "the basis of the 1992 meeting in Hong Kong." He did so because there was actually no consensus reached in 1992 and the meeting held in Hong Kong was to resolve issues arising from cross-strait exchanges and interactions. It was an occasion when both sides put aside political controversies to seek solutions. This spirit of seeking commonalities among differences is desperately needed under the current circumstances of Beijing and Taipei having little trust in each other. Chen took the initiative to hold out an olive branch and suggested using the practical issue of charter flights for passengers and cargo as a starting point for dialogue. Now it is up to Beijing to respond.
Taiwan wants peace across the Taiwan Strait, but peace will not simply descend from heaven; it can only result from a complex negotiation process. Taiwan should not lose control over the process by which peace can be achieved. China has deployed more than 600 missiles targeting Taiwan, and neither Taiwan nor the international community can pretend that they do not exist. It is for this reason that Taiwan should not forego its arms procurement. Even if China and Taiwan engage in direct talks, Taiwan's arms procurements and preparedness are essential to create military confidence mechanisms that can be testified to by the international community. Ensuring a proper military balance across the Taiwan Strait is essential to prevent military adventurism that might destabilize the region.
In terms of international politics, many countries in the region agree that the tension across the Taiwan Strait cannot be ignored. Threatened by China, this nation can appreciate the anxiety of the international community over this tension. Taiwan has worked hard to find a solution, and its efforts have been rec-ognized by both the US and Japan. Chen's speech is further proof that this nation is not the troublemaker in the region.
Chen's speech was a response to China's May 17 statement about cross-strait negotiations, direct links and trade. It remains unclear whether China's leaders will see in the speech the differences between China and Taiwan that will lead to disaster or the similarities between them that will lead to peace.
Concerns that the US might abandon Taiwan are often overstated. While US President Donald Trump’s handling of Ukraine raised unease in Taiwan, it is crucial to recognize that Taiwan is not Ukraine. Under Trump, the US views Ukraine largely as a European problem, whereas the Indo-Pacific region remains its primary geopolitical focus. Taipei holds immense strategic value for Washington and is unlikely to be treated as a bargaining chip in US-China relations. Trump’s vision of “making America great again” would be directly undermined by any move to abandon Taiwan. Despite the rhetoric of “America First,” the Trump administration understands the necessity of
US President Donald Trump’s challenge to domestic American economic-political priorities, and abroad to the global balance of power, are not a threat to the security of Taiwan. Trump’s success can go far to contain the real threat — the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) surge to hegemony — while offering expanded defensive opportunities for Taiwan. In a stunning affirmation of the CCP policy of “forceful reunification,” an obscene euphemism for the invasion of Taiwan and the destruction of its democracy, on March 13, 2024, the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) used Chinese social media platforms to show the first-time linkage of three new
If you had a vision of the future where China did not dominate the global car industry, you can kiss those dreams goodbye. That is because US President Donald Trump’s promised 25 percent tariff on auto imports takes an ax to the only bits of the emerging electric vehicle (EV) supply chain that are not already dominated by Beijing. The biggest losers when the levies take effect this week would be Japan and South Korea. They account for one-third of the cars imported into the US, and as much as two-thirds of those imported from outside North America. (Mexico and Canada, while
I have heard people equate the government’s stance on resisting forced unification with China or the conditional reinstatement of the military court system with the rise of the Nazis before World War II. The comparison is absurd. There is no meaningful parallel between the government and Nazi Germany, nor does such a mindset exist within the general public in Taiwan. It is important to remember that the German public bore some responsibility for the horrors of the Holocaust. Post-World War II Germany’s transitional justice efforts were rooted in a national reckoning and introspection. Many Jews were sent to concentration camps not