“Never say never” are words to live by, not only for ordinary people, but especially for politicians.
When President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) declared in a recent interview with CNN that “We will never ask the Americans to fight for Taiwan,” he committed a big blunder, especially as the president of a country.
In this instance, he did not speak for the overwhelming majority of Taiwanese.
In fact, what he said is contrary to the popular will of the Taiwanese and contradicts the enlightened national interest of Taiwan.
The overwhelming majority of Taiwanese understand and appreciate that the US’s defense commitment, as expressed in the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979, has contributed enormously to the peace, security and stability of Taiwan for over 30 years, enabling Taiwan to achieve economic growth and to experience political transformation from the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) oppression under “the perpetual martial law” to a free, democratic country committed to protecting and honoring human rights.
As Benjamin Franklin wrote, “God helps those who help themselves.” We the Taiwanese people realize that we must do our utmost to defend and protect our island nation.
But in a globalized world of ever-increasing interdependence and danger, which country can really stand alone? Collective security for mutual defense and assistance is the answer.
The Taiwanese are a democratic, peace-loving people. For decades, though, we have been constantly threatened by a rising, powerful neighbor — the People’s Republic of China — that has more than 1,400 missiles aimed at Taiwan.
Internally, we now have a president who has shown every sign of leaning on China and of submitting to China’s will in his pursuit of the so-called “ultimate unification with China” — betraying his campaign promises and acting against the popular will of the Taiwanese people.
Taiwan must remain strong and courageous, but we do need friends in this dangerous world.
The US has been a real friend of Taiwan. We cherish its friendship and appreciate its defense assistance and commitment, and will continue to do so.
Together, we can continue to keep Taiwan a free, democratic country, contributing to peace, security and democracy in the Asia-Pacific community.
Chen Lung-chu is the chairman of the Taiwan New Century Foundation.
Two weeks ago, Malaysian actress Michelle Yeoh (楊紫瓊) raised hackles in Taiwan by posting to her 2.6 million Instagram followers that she was visiting “Taipei, China.” Yeoh’s post continues a long-standing trend of Chinese propaganda that spreads disinformation about Taiwan’s political status and geography, aimed at deceiving the world into supporting its illegitimate claims to Taiwan, which is not and has never been part of China. Taiwan must respond to this blatant act of cognitive warfare. Failure to respond merely cedes ground to China to continue its efforts to conquer Taiwan in the global consciousness to justify an invasion. Taiwan’s government
This month’s news that Taiwan ranks as Asia’s happiest place according to this year’s World Happiness Report deserves both celebration and reflection. Moving up from 31st to 27th globally and surpassing Singapore as Asia’s happiness leader is gratifying, but the true significance lies deeper than these statistics. As a society at the crossroads of Eastern tradition and Western influence, Taiwan embodies a distinctive approach to happiness worth examining more closely. The report highlights Taiwan’s exceptional habit of sharing meals — 10.1 shared meals out of 14 weekly opportunities, ranking eighth globally. This practice is not merely about food, but represents something more
In an article published on this page on Tuesday, Kaohsiung-based journalist Julien Oeuillet wrote that “legions of people worldwide would care if a disaster occurred in South Korea or Japan, but the same people would not bat an eyelid if Taiwan disappeared.” That is quite a statement. We are constantly reading about the importance of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), hailed in Taiwan as the nation’s “silicon shield” protecting it from hostile foreign forces such as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and so crucial to the global supply chain for semiconductors that its loss would cost the global economy US$1
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
RSS