China's continued military expansion has not only increased tension across the Taiwan Strait, but has also made Japan, the US and other nations nervous. The US, as the world's policeman, is especially troubled, for it is responsible for maintaining security in the Asia-Pacific region. If Taiwan's position became endangered, the US could not easily ignore the situation.
The Sino-Japanese relationship has been marked by attacks on each other's territory, with China's Yuan (
China's strengthened military serves not only to discourage any move toward formal independence by Taiwan, but also to threaten Japan. China continues to believe that Taiwan's sense of identity has not completely rid itself of Japanese colonial influence. It has even accused Japan of fanning the flames of Taiwan independence, using this as a way of hinting at its sense of historical injustice at Japan's hands. But Japan is a powerful nation in its own right, and economically at least China is beholden to Japan, so that it dare not adopt too harsh an attitude. Instead it has taken out its sense of historical injustice on Taiwan.
In his video conference with foreign correspondents in Japan on Tuesday, President Chen Shui-bian (
The US, however, seems to clearly understand the close security relationship between Taiwan and Japan resulting from historical and geopolitical factors. That's why it draws Japan closer into the maintenance of security in the Strait as part of the US-Japan security treaty.
"God helps those who help themselves," the saying goes. One could also say that a state must be determined to defend itself in order to expect its neighbors to help. A state lacking that determination will be doomed, for what state will put its people in harm's way for a state that is ready to surrender? The arms procurement bill, so long delayed by the legislature, is really a test of the Taiwanese people's will to defend themselves. If the bill is passed, it will substantially improve the nation's ability to defend itself. And it will also tell the international community that the Taiwanese people are determined to continue moving toward greater autonomy.
At the same time, the pan-blue camp's obstructionism highlights the lack of a central guiding idea in Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and People First Party (PFP) positions. The priority of the past KMT government's diplomatic activities was to purchase advanced weaponry. We must not forget that F-16 fighter jets, French Mirage fighter jets and Lafayette frigates were purchased during the KMT era. Now, with a new government, they have changed their minds and instead make it their top priority to block anything the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government tries to do to improve the nation's military capabilities.
The KMT's fickle ways only prove that the party lacks a clear and constructive political plan. How could such a party gain the public's trust?
In their recent op-ed “Trump Should Rein In Taiwan” in Foreign Policy magazine, Christopher Chivvis and Stephen Wertheim argued that the US should pressure President William Lai (賴清德) to “tone it down” to de-escalate tensions in the Taiwan Strait — as if Taiwan’s words are more of a threat to peace than Beijing’s actions. It is an old argument dressed up in new concern: that Washington must rein in Taipei to avoid war. However, this narrative gets it backward. Taiwan is not the problem; China is. Calls for a so-called “grand bargain” with Beijing — where the US pressures Taiwan into concessions
The term “assassin’s mace” originates from Chinese folklore, describing a concealed weapon used by a weaker hero to defeat a stronger adversary with an unexpected strike. In more general military parlance, the concept refers to an asymmetric capability that targets a critical vulnerability of an adversary. China has found its modern equivalent of the assassin’s mace with its high-altitude electromagnetic pulse (HEMP) weapons, which are nuclear warheads detonated at a high altitude, emitting intense electromagnetic radiation capable of disabling and destroying electronics. An assassin’s mace weapon possesses two essential characteristics: strategic surprise and the ability to neutralize a core dependency.
Chinese President and Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Chairman Xi Jinping (習近平) said in a politburo speech late last month that his party must protect the “bottom line” to prevent systemic threats. The tone of his address was grave, revealing deep anxieties about China’s current state of affairs. Essentially, what he worries most about is systemic threats to China’s normal development as a country. The US-China trade war has turned white hot: China’s export orders have plummeted, Chinese firms and enterprises are shutting up shop, and local debt risks are mounting daily, causing China’s economy to flag externally and hemorrhage internally. China’s
US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) were born under the sign of Gemini. Geminis are known for their intelligence, creativity, adaptability and flexibility. It is unlikely, then, that the trade conflict between the US and China would escalate into a catastrophic collision. It is more probable that both sides would seek a way to de-escalate, paving the way for a Trump-Xi summit that allows the global economy some breathing room. Practically speaking, China and the US have vulnerabilities, and a prolonged trade war would be damaging for both. In the US, the electoral system means that public opinion
RSS