The Chinese Communist Party's third generation leader Jiang Zemin (
Does this mean that Hu's time has arrived? It is still too early to say.
Hu's rise has been shrouded in mystery. When he took over the presidency and the position as party leader, international media could not pin down his political beliefs. Even though he had already wielded considerable power, he was careful not to impinge on Jiang's power. He did not pronounce his policies, probably because he was prudent. What he did was a likely necessary political calculation during a leadership change in an authoritarian regime.
With Hu's replacement of Jiang, will there be a policy change? In the short term, Hu is unlikely to modify Jiang's policies too much. Beijing will continue to stay on good terms with the US. Not challenging Washington, it will however embrace policies that increase its presence and influence in the Asia-Pacific region and globally. Though Hu's proposal of "peaceful rising" for China was shot down by hawks like Jiang, the country's continued economic development will inevitably force Hu to downplay the intimidating force China represents. Hu's use of strategies is expected to be more flexible since he now does not need to worry as much about pressure from hawks in the military.
Jiang has held power for over a decade and has been a dominant influence on cross-strait relations. "Jiang's eight points" are on a par with Deng Xiaoping's (
In the two years that Hu has been in power, he has focused primarily on battling corruption and building up the economy. While Hu will, in the short term, assess the results of the US presidential election and Taiwan's legislative election, he will certainly not depart from Jiang's Eight Points. This does not rule out a more active posture in developing cross-strait trade as a means of using commercial pressure to bring about unification. This is something that Taiwan needs to guard against.
In his videoconference with the UN Correspondents Association last week, Chen sought to engage Hu in a dialogue. Taiwan recognizes that Hu is now established in power, but any thaw in the cross-strait relationship will probably have to wait till spring next year.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) challenges and ignores the international rules-based order by violating Taiwanese airspace using a high-flying drone: This incident is a multi-layered challenge, including a lawfare challenge against the First Island Chain, the US, and the world. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) defines lawfare as “controlling the enemy through the law or using the law to constrain the enemy.” Chen Yu-cheng (陳育正), an associate professor at the Graduate Institute of China Military Affairs Studies, at Taiwan’s Fu Hsing Kang College (National Defense University), argues the PLA uses lawfare to create a precedent and a new de facto legal
Chile has elected a new government that has the opportunity to take a fresh look at some key aspects of foreign economic policy, mainly a greater focus on Asia, including Taiwan. Still, in the great scheme of things, Chile is a small nation in Latin America, compared with giants such as Brazil and Mexico, or other major markets such as Colombia and Argentina. So why should Taiwan pay much attention to the new administration? Because the victory of Chilean president-elect Jose Antonio Kast, a right-of-center politician, can be seen as confirming that the continent is undergoing one of its periodic political shifts,
On Sunday, elite free solo climber Alex Honnold — famous worldwide for scaling sheer rock faces without ropes — climbed Taipei 101, once the world’s tallest building and still the most recognizable symbol of Taiwan’s modern identity. Widespread media coverage not only promoted Taiwan, but also saw the Republic of China (ROC) flag fluttering beside the building, breaking through China’s political constraints on Taiwan. That visual impact did not happen by accident. Credit belongs to Taipei 101 chairwoman Janet Chia (賈永婕), who reportedly took the extra step of replacing surrounding flags with the ROC flag ahead of the climb. Just
Taiwan’s long-term care system has fallen into a structural paradox. Staffing shortages have led to a situation in which almost 20 percent of the about 110,000 beds in the care system are vacant, but new patient admissions remain closed. Although the government’s “Long-term Care 3.0” program has increased subsidies and sought to integrate medical and elderly care systems, strict staff-to-patient ratios, a narrow labor pipeline and rising inflation-driven costs have left many small to medium-sized care centers struggling. With nearly 20,000 beds forced to remain empty as a consequence, the issue is not isolated management failures, but a far more
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