News that the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government was responsible for the freeze in arms procurement from the US, although initially shocking, should not have come as a surprise given the course the administration of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has charted since coming to office.
In little more than four weeks the government has already managed to harm or reverse much of the work of the previous government in protecting Taiwan’s sovereignty and upholding its dignity.
The Ma administration has, in record time, managed to denigrate the nation’s sovereignty and the standing of its leader while ingratiating itself to China, all in return for a few minor economic rewards from Beijing.
But a new low was reached last week when it was revealed that it was the government that requested the US government halt some US$12 billion in arms sales, although now it appears the scene was set several months before Ma took office.
Notwithstanding the vast amounts of money Beijing is investing in improving its war machine, it is a safe bet that many voters did not believe a total freeze was what Ma meant when he promised “not to engage in an arms race with China” ahead of the presidential election.
Many voters who gave their backing to Ma in March would surely have had second thoughts if they had known what he was planning.
Volunteering to put a halt to arms procurement — when a great deal of uncertainty exists over the future of the sales — was a shortsighted, reckless move that could have serious ramifications.
The KMT, as an opposition party, was responsible for a delay of several years for many of the items on the shopping list. Should the delay continue until a new president takes up residence in the White House, the US may decide to make it permanent.
This may seem implausible, but there is legitimate concern as Taipei cuddles ever closer to China that advanced US military technology may eventually fall into Chinese hands.
Add to this the fact that the KMT has already ganged up with the Chinese Communist Party to marginalize the independence movement, and the question follows: What’s to stop the KMT throwing in its chips with a rising China in the battle against the world’s only superpower?
It has been stated time and time again that in order to get what it wants from cross-strait negotiations, Taiwan needs to enter talks from a position of strength, instead of rolling over and exposing its belly like a faithful pooch being petted by its master.
As we saw last week, when Taiwan enters into negotiations with the Chinese at a disadvantage, all it can do is agree to what Beijing wants. It has no bargaining chips with which to stave off China’s aggressive agenda.
Of course, some Taiwanese are tempted by the supposed benefits that will arise from closer economic ties with China, but it is presumptuous in the extreme to think that they would sacrifice their freedom to secure such benefits. The spineless, fawning attitude of this government, should it continue, ignores this and thus poses a very real threat to that freedom.
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