Vice President William Lai’s (賴清德) victory in the presidential election was a rejection of China’s pressure and interference and a reaffirmation of Taiwan’s sovereignty and democracy.
It also challenges China’s expansionist ambitions in the South and East China seas, where Beijing has asserted its territorial claims and maritime rights, often at the expense of its neighbors.
Taiwan, which controls several islands and reefs in the disputed waters, is strengthening ties with the US and other like-minded countries, such as Japan and Australia, to counter China’s aggression and influence.
China’s first response to Lai’s victory was to poach the allegiance of Nauru, a Pacific island nation that switched its diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China on Monday. This was a symbolic gesture to demonstrate China’s global sway and to isolate Taiwan diplomatically. Taiwan at present has formal relations with only 12 nations, mostly in Africa, Latin America and the Pacific.
However, China also signaled a shift in its approach to Taiwan, emphasizing peaceful unification rather than a military solution. This reflects China’s domestic constraints, such as slowing economic growth, rising social unrest and COVID-19 pandemic impacts. Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) might not want to risk a confrontation with Taiwan and the US, which has pledged to support Taiwan’s security and defense under the Taiwan Relations Act and the “six assurances.”
China is likely to continue coercing Taiwan through actions such as military exercises and “gray zone” tactics near the Taiwan Strait, and imposing sanctions and trade barriers on non-essential Taiwanese goods.
However, China would also avoid crossing the red line that both Taipei and Washington respect — no unilateral changes to the “status quo.”
This means China would not militarily annex Taiwan, nor would Taiwan declare formal independence. Both countries would maintain a delicate balance in their cross-strait relations.
Khedroob Thondup is a former member of the Tibetan parliament in exile.
Taiwan’s semiconductor industry gives it a strategic advantage, but that advantage would be threatened as the US seeks to end Taiwan’s monopoly in the industry and as China grows more assertive, analysts said at a security dialogue last week. While the semiconductor industry is Taiwan’s “silicon shield,” its dominance has been seen by some in the US as “a monopoly,” South Korea’s Sungkyunkwan University academic Kwon Seok-joon said at an event held by the Center for Strategic and International Studies. In addition, Taiwan lacks sufficient energy sources and is vulnerable to natural disasters and geopolitical threats from China, he said.
After reading the article by Hideki Nagayama [English version on same page] published in the Liberty Times (sister newspaper of the Taipei Times) on Wednesday, I decided to write this article in hopes of ever so slightly easing my depression. In August, I visited the National Museum of Ethnology in Osaka, Japan, to attend a seminar. While there, I had the chance to look at the museum’s collections. I felt extreme annoyance at seeing that the museum had classified Taiwanese indigenous peoples as part of China’s ethnic minorities. I kept thinking about how I could make this known, but after returning
What value does the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) hold in Taiwan? One might say that it is to defend — or at the very least, maintain — truly “blue” qualities. To be truly “blue” — without impurities, rejecting any “red” influence — is to uphold the ideology consistent with that on which the Republic of China (ROC) was established. The KMT would likely not object to this notion. However, if the current generation of KMT political elites do not understand what it means to be “blue” — or even light blue — their knowledge and bravery are far too lacking
Taipei’s population is estimated to drop below 2.5 million by the end of this month — the only city among the nation’s six special municipalities that has more people moving out than moving in this year. A city that is classified as a special municipality can have three deputy mayors if it has a population of more than 2.5 million people, Article 55 of the Local Government Act (地方制度法) states. To counter the capital’s shrinking population, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) held a cross-departmental population policy committee meeting on Wednesday last week to discuss possible solutions. According to Taipei City Government data, Taipei’s