Jiang Zemin's (江澤民) decision to transfer power over the military to Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) came as a surprise to the governments of both Taiwan and the US, Taiwan's top national security official said yesterday.
He added that officials are monitoring what roles heavyweights in Jiang's faction will serve in the future.
"According to information collected by the top government intelligence system and passed from the US government, there have been intense power struggles between Jiang and Hu recently and heavyweights on both sides refused to make any concessions," said Chiou I-jen (
He stressed that China's main policy on Taiwan will not change immediately after Hu's succession to Jiang's position. The important effect, he said, is that the international community will likely be able to more clearly judge Beijing's movements following Hu's consolidation of power.
Jiang announced his retirement from the post of chairman of the Central Military Commission of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) on Sunday during the Fourth Central Members Assembly of the CCP's 16th Party Congress.
Hu's succession to head of the military commission comes after a lengthy leadership transition that began in November 2002, when he replaced Jiang as party head. He then took over from Jiang as president in March last year.
Meanwhile, Bonnie Glaser, a consultant on Asian affairs and senior associate of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, echoed Chiou's point of view, saying that Jiang's final retirement came as a surprise to most analysts.
Even more unexpected, she said, was that Zeng Qinghong (曾慶紅), who has been regarded as Jiang's right hand, was not appointed vice chairman of the Central Military Commission.
As to whether, over time, there will be any change in China's approach or policy toward Taiwan, Glaser commented that it remains to be seen.
"First, [Hu] is part of a collective leadership -- Hu Jintao is not a Mao or a Deng and must consult with his colleagues," Glaser said. "Second, public opinion is fiercely nationalistic on the Taiwan question and no leader can be seen as soft toward Taiwan."
Third, she said, it is difficult for China's leaders to renounce the policies that they have inherited toward Taiwan -- "one country, two systems", the "one China" principle and Jiang's "eight points."
Glaser stressed that so far there is also no evidence to indicate Hu supports a different policy or approach toward Taiwan.
"Hu has been quite cautious and allowed Jiang to retain control over policy toward Taiwan," Glaser said.
Glaser claimed that it will take time to see whether Hu would favor a new strategy.
"As long as Jiang is alive, I think Hu will continue to be cautious and patient."
Glaser indicated that leaders on both sides of the Taiwan Strait may have to seize this crucial period to further express goodwill, probe for flexibility and seek channels of dialogue.
"If he [Hu] makes a wrong move, he could be vulnerable," she said.
"Taiwan should take this opportunity to signal [China] that it is ready to work toward a brighter future for the people on both sides of the Strait," Glaser said.
WANG RELEASED: A police investigation showed that an organized crime group allegedly taught their clients how to pretend to be sick during medical exams Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) and 11 others were released on bail yesterday, after being questioned for allegedly dodging compulsory military service or forging documents to help others avoid serving. Wang, 33, was catapulted into stardom for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代). Lately, he has been focusing on developing his entertainment career in China. The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office last month began investigating an organized crime group that is allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified documents. Police in New Taipei City Yonghe Precinct at the end of last month arrested the main suspect,
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
LITTORAL REGIMENTS: The US Marine Corps is transitioning to an ‘island hopping’ strategy to counterattack Beijing’s area denial strategy The US Marine Corps (USMC) has introduced new anti-drone systems to bolster air defense in the Pacific island chain amid growing Chinese military influence in the region, The Telegraph reported on Sunday. The new Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS) Mk 1 is being developed to counter “the growing menace of unmanned aerial systems,” it cited the Marine Corps as saying. China has constructed a powerful defense mechanism in the Pacific Ocean west of the first island chain by deploying weapons such as rockets, submarines and anti-ship missiles — which is part of its anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) strategy against adversaries — the
Eleven people, including actor Darren Wang (王大陸), were taken into custody today for questioning regarding the evasion of compulsory military service and document forgery, the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said. Eight of the people, including Wang, are suspected of evading military service, while three are suspected of forging medical documents to assist them, the report said. They are all being questioned by police and would later be transferred to the prosecutors’ office for further investigation. Three men surnamed Lee (李), Chang (張) and Lin (林) are suspected of improperly assisting conscripts in changing their military classification from “stand-by
RSS