The US should try to amend the rules of membership for key international organizations so that Taiwan can join them, a new study by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) says.
Written by CSIS Asia expert Bonnie Glaser, the 50-page report Taiwan’s Quest for Greater Participation in the International Community makes a series of wide-ranging recommendations.
It also reveals that a senior People’s Republic of China (PRC) official told a visiting CSIS delegation three months ago that China prefers to find a “comprehensive solution” to the issue of Taiwan’s international space.
“One precondition is that Taipei must express or demonstrate through concrete actions that Taiwan adheres to ‘one China,’” the report says.
The official told CSIS: “If we can feel [Taiwan’s] sincerity on this issue then giving Taiwan international space can be good for reunification.”
The report says that it “remains unclear” what Taiwan has to do to show sincerity and Beijing “reserves the right” to determine whether or not Taipei has done so.
It says that Beijing recognizes that blocking Taiwan’s international space could further weaken President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) popularity at home and reduce domestic support for his policy of improving cross-strait relations.
Moreover, China wants to win the hearts and minds of the people of Taiwan, the majority of whom attach great importance to the issue of international space, it says.
The US should, in consultation with the PRC and other countries, seek to revise or amend the charters or rules of membership for key international organizations so that Taiwan can join in some capacity without raising sovereignty matters, Glaser says.
“Given their respective influential statuses within international organizations, the US and China have significant leverage to execute such changes,” she says.
In addition, Glaser says the US should help Taiwan to make the necessary structural adjustments so it can make gains toward Trans-Pacific Partnership standards. It should support Taiwan’s expanded role in organizations in which it is already a party, and emphasize to Beijing that it hurts its own goals with Taiwan by its “begrudging approach” to the issue of Taiwan’s international space.
China should provide greater support for Taiwan’s international space to further its broader cross-strait policy and work with the US to find suitable terminology and implement changes in organizational charters or rules, she says.
China should also provide “unqualified support and assistance” for Taiwan to participate in the regional economic integration. process.
“Taiwan’s ambiguous international status has long complicated its ability to participate in international organizations in which the rest of the world shares information and makes critical global decisions,” Glaser says.
“Being barred from international economic organizations erodes Taiwan’s international competitiveness and hinders economic liberalization of the domestic economy, as well as its further integration regionally,” she says.
Glaser says the US, Japan, Canada, Australia and many countries in the EU support a larger role for Taiwan in the international community.
In all, she makes 12 recommendations for action by Taiwan, five for China and five for the US.
Beijing has blocked Taiwan from joining many international organizations — particularly those that require statehood for membership — because it fears that membership might encourage Taipei to seek independence.
“Taiwan is left out of the loop,” Glaser says, adding that many states are unable or unwilling to risk “Beijing’s ire” by lobbying on Taiwan’s behalf, she says.
Taiwan’s ability to pursue and expand its international footprint is limited by the unique challenges it faces, particularly ambiguity surrounding its statehood and relations vis-a-vis Beijing, the study says.
China is fearful that as Taiwan’s global participation independent of China continues to grow, the nation could use its increased space to push for de jure independence, Glaser says.
“This fear exists despite the fact that Beijing’s considerable economic and political influence in the world makes it extremely unlikely that Taipei could leverage its presence in international organizations to achieve independence,” she says.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as
RSS