From Nov. 1 to Nov. 5, China held the Beijing Summit and Ministerial Conference, which was part of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) attended by leaders and ministers from 48 African nations.
During the conference, Beijing seemed to have been at least partially placed under martial law, which might have been a warmup for what will happen during the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
The conference marked China's largest diplomatic effort since Chinese President Hu Jintao (
Prior to the summit, China tried to capture the hearts and minds of Taiwan's diplomatic allies in Africa by saying that they could also attend. However, none of Taiwan's five African diplomatic allies showed up.
The summit adopted a declaration which included reaffirming adherence to the "one-China" policy, requiring attendees, at least on paper, to toe China's line.
While the declaration wasn't anything new, China's lavishness in giving money to African nations has begun to seriously threatened Taiwan's diplomatic relations with its African allies.
In addition to canceling some US$10 billion in African debt, China has expanded the scale of its aid to the continent, which is set to double by 2009.
Furthermore, in the next three years, China will provide US$3 billion in preferential loans and US$2 billion in preferential buyer's credits to Africa, and it will also create a US$5 billion fund to encourage Chinese investment in Africa.
China's investments in Africa appear a bit odd in light of the country's economic difficulties.
Last year's Human Development Report, released by the UN Development Program, pointed out the scale of regional inequality within China. For example, if Guizhou Province were a country, it would rank just above Namibia on the Human Development Index, while Shanghai would rank alongside Portugal.
Beijing's goals appear to include establishing an international united front against democratic nations around the world and suffocating Taiwan diplomatically.
By contrast, Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs appropriated a NT$28.17 billion (US$800 million) budget for African aid this year, only a drop in the ocean compared to China's contributions. Unfortunately, even modest foreign aid by the Taiwanese government is criticized as "checkbook diplomacy" by the opposition parties.
And when the nation's president wants to break the diplomatic blockade and make a foreign visit, his plans are often revealed by the media prior to the trip, resulting in more Chinese pressure on Taiwan's allies.
Hu also used the summit in Beijing as leverage in his attempt to garner votes for Hong Kong former health chief Margaret Chan (陳馮富珍) in her successful bid to become director-general of the WHO.
During the 2003 SARS outbreak, which claimed 73 Taiwanese lives, Chan helped the Chinese Communist Party conceal the truth about SARS cases in China, resulting in its spread to Taiwan via Hong Kong. Taiwan is a sovereign nation and was a victim of SARS, yet had difficulty making its voice heard in the WHO.
Given Taiwan's current diplomatic predicament, it should be given plenty of leeway for secret diplomacy. Even if the whole "state affairs fund" were put to use, it still would only amount to NT$50 million (US$1.5 million) per year.
Unfortunately, the use of this budget is subject to manipulation by pro-China lawmakers. If they shamelessly reveal the identity of agents carrying out secret missions abroad, will anyone be willing to accept those missions in the future? If not, then China will have achieved its goal of isolating Taiwan.
Paul Lin is a political commentator based in Taipei.
Translated by Lin Ya-ti
As the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its People’s Liberation Army (PLA) reach the point of confidence that they can start and win a war to destroy the democratic culture on Taiwan, any future decision to do so may likely be directly affected by the CCP’s ability to promote wars on the Korean Peninsula, in Europe, or, as most recently, on the Indian subcontinent. It stands to reason that the Trump Administration’s success early on May 10 to convince India and Pakistan to deescalate their four-day conventional military conflict, assessed to be close to a nuclear weapons exchange, also served to
The recent aerial clash between Pakistan and India offers a glimpse of how China is narrowing the gap in military airpower with the US. It is a warning not just for Washington, but for Taipei, too. Claims from both sides remain contested, but a broader picture is emerging among experts who track China’s air force and fighter jet development: Beijing’s defense systems are growing increasingly credible. Pakistan said its deployment of Chinese-manufactured J-10C fighters downed multiple Indian aircraft, although New Delhi denies this. There are caveats: Even if Islamabad’s claims are accurate, Beijing’s equipment does not offer a direct comparison
After India’s punitive precision strikes targeting what New Delhi called nine terrorist sites inside Pakistan, reactions poured in from governments around the world. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) issued a statement on May 10, opposing terrorism and expressing concern about the growing tensions between India and Pakistan. The statement noticeably expressed support for the Indian government’s right to maintain its national security and act against terrorists. The ministry said that it “works closely with democratic partners worldwide in staunch opposition to international terrorism” and expressed “firm support for all legitimate and necessary actions taken by the government of India
Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) has said that the armed forces must reach a high level of combat readiness by 2027. That date was not simply picked out of a hat. It has been bandied around since 2021, and was mentioned most recently by US Senator John Cornyn during a question to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at a US Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Tuesday. It first surfaced during a hearing in the US in 2021, when then-US Navy admiral Philip Davidson, who was head of the US Indo-Pacific Command, said: “The threat [of military
RSS