Since the administration of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) took office, it has constantly claimed that a diplomatic truce and cross-strait reconciliation would not compromise Taiwan’s sovereignty. But experience shows that China likes to play a dominant role in cross-strait issues, while the Ma government seems incapable of dealing with China. Sovereignty and security in Taiwan are encountering unprecedented threats.
First, there has recently been much criticism about cross-strait dialogue being that between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Since cross-strait issues are discussed via a KMT-CCP forum, the government can evade legislative supervision and exclude the opposition from the picture.
Even if cross-strait agreements are signed via the mechanism of the Straits Exchange Foundation and the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait, their evasion of legislative review creates the impression that cross-strait talks are closed-door meetings between the KMT and the CCP.
The content and execution of cross-strait agreements have gradually made people worry about issues like cross-strait relations becoming domestic issues and the territories of Taiwan becoming part of China. Since Ma asserted that relations between Taiwan and China are not “state-to-state,” but “region to region,” the government has in practice labeled cross-strait air routes as domestic by opening domestic airports to China, but not to other countries. The government has also opened the nation’s seaports to China, giving the international community the impression that the Taiwan Strait has become part of China. There have been several recent cases in which Chinese tourists attempted to enter Taiwan without the required documentation. The government then rushed to apply for permits on their behalf. It is extremely worrying to think that Taiwan might soon become a province or an area of China and lose its sovereignty.
The Ma administration’s emphasis on cross-strait policy over diplomacy shows that it thinks the quickest route into the international community is via Beijing. This has also given rise to the possibility that rumors about Taiwan’s international space becoming something for Beijing to decide will start to circulate in the international community. By saying that Taiwan’s invitation to become an observer at the World Health Assembly (WHA) represented China’s goodwill, the Ma administration helped spread these rumors throughout the international community, which means that Taiwan’s WHA observer status could become Taiwan’s first major loss in its diplomatic battle with China.
Lastly, the Ma administration’s promotion of an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China is making a “one China market” more likely. Without carrying out any assessments, without any plans and without having gained a consensus on the matter within Taiwan, the Ma administration has persistently pinned the hopes of Taiwan’s economy on China. This will have various negative effects, including the relocation of local industries and a continued rise in unemployment, and will make Taiwan lose all its bargaining chips in political talks with China.
The international community and Taiwan must come up with timely controls to stop the Ma administration and the CCP from conspiring to rob Taiwan of its sovereignty. Therefore, we would like to urge each Taiwanese to stand up and take action to help protect Taiwan’s sovereignty. We cannot keep waiting, as there is a risk the situation will reach a point of no return.
Taiwan Thinktank is an independent, nonprofit public policy research organization based in Taipei.
TRANSLATED BY TED YANG AND DREW CAMERON
Why is Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) not a “happy camper” these days regarding Taiwan? Taiwanese have not become more “CCP friendly” in response to the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) use of spies and graft by the United Front Work Department, intimidation conducted by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and the Armed Police/Coast Guard, and endless subversive political warfare measures, including cyber-attacks, economic coercion, and diplomatic isolation. The percentage of Taiwanese that prefer the status quo or prefer moving towards independence continues to rise — 76 percent as of December last year. According to National Chengchi University (NCCU) polling, the Taiwanese
It would be absurd to claim to see a silver lining behind every US President Donald Trump cloud. Those clouds are too many, too dark and too dangerous. All the same, viewed from a domestic political perspective, there is a clear emerging UK upside to Trump’s efforts at crashing the post-Cold War order. It might even get a boost from Thursday’s Washington visit by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. In July last year, when Starmer became prime minister, the Labour Party was rigidly on the defensive about Europe. Brexit was seen as an electorally unstable issue for a party whose priority
US President Donald Trump is systematically dismantling the network of multilateral institutions, organizations and agreements that have helped prevent a third world war for more than 70 years. Yet many governments are twisting themselves into knots trying to downplay his actions, insisting that things are not as they seem and that even if they are, confronting the menace in the White House simply is not an option. Disagreement must be carefully disguised to avoid provoking his wrath. For the British political establishment, the convenient excuse is the need to preserve the UK’s “special relationship” with the US. Following their White House
US President Donald Trump’s return to the White House has brought renewed scrutiny to the Taiwan-US semiconductor relationship with his claim that Taiwan “stole” the US chip business and threats of 100 percent tariffs on foreign-made processors. For Taiwanese and industry leaders, understanding those developments in their full context is crucial while maintaining a clear vision of Taiwan’s role in the global technology ecosystem. The assertion that Taiwan “stole” the US’ semiconductor industry fundamentally misunderstands the evolution of global technology manufacturing. Over the past four decades, Taiwan’s semiconductor industry, led by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), has grown through legitimate means