President Chen Shui-bian's (
Both pro-independence and pro-China advocates can find in Chen's speech things to like and dislike. For example, the Taiwan Solidarity Union agreed with Chen's statement that "Taiwan is the Republic of China, and the Republic of China is Taiwan," but found it difficult to accept his proposition that "both sides use the basis of the 1992 meeting in Hong Kong" to seek possible schemes that are "not necessarily perfect but acceptable." The pan-blue camp in turn questions the possibility that Chen accepts the arrangement of "one country, two systems."
Of course, Chen will not accept such an arrangement. That is why he steered away from the terms "1992 consensus" and "1992 one China principle," and spoke instead of using "the basis of the 1992 meeting in Hong Kong." He did so because there was actually no consensus reached in 1992 and the meeting held in Hong Kong was to resolve issues arising from cross-strait exchanges and interactions. It was an occasion when both sides put aside political controversies to seek solutions. This spirit of seeking commonalities among differences is desperately needed under the current circumstances of Beijing and Taipei having little trust in each other. Chen took the initiative to hold out an olive branch and suggested using the practical issue of charter flights for passengers and cargo as a starting point for dialogue. Now it is up to Beijing to respond.
Taiwan wants peace across the Taiwan Strait, but peace will not simply descend from heaven; it can only result from a complex negotiation process. Taiwan should not lose control over the process by which peace can be achieved. China has deployed more than 600 missiles targeting Taiwan, and neither Taiwan nor the international community can pretend that they do not exist. It is for this reason that Taiwan should not forego its arms procurement. Even if China and Taiwan engage in direct talks, Taiwan's arms procurements and preparedness are essential to create military confidence mechanisms that can be testified to by the international community. Ensuring a proper military balance across the Taiwan Strait is essential to prevent military adventurism that might destabilize the region.
In terms of international politics, many countries in the region agree that the tension across the Taiwan Strait cannot be ignored. Threatened by China, this nation can appreciate the anxiety of the international community over this tension. Taiwan has worked hard to find a solution, and its efforts have been rec-ognized by both the US and Japan. Chen's speech is further proof that this nation is not the troublemaker in the region.
Chen's speech was a response to China's May 17 statement about cross-strait negotiations, direct links and trade. It remains unclear whether China's leaders will see in the speech the differences between China and Taiwan that will lead to disaster or the similarities between them that will lead to peace.
The central bank and the US Department of the Treasury on Friday issued a joint statement that both sides agreed to avoid currency manipulation and the use of exchange rates to gain a competitive advantage, and would only intervene in foreign-exchange markets to combat excess volatility and disorderly movements. The central bank also agreed to disclose its foreign-exchange intervention amounts quarterly rather than every six months, starting from next month. It emphasized that the joint statement is unrelated to tariff negotiations between Taipei and Washington, and that the US never requested the appreciation of the New Taiwan dollar during the
Since leaving office last year, former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has been journeying across continents. Her ability to connect with international audiences and foster goodwill toward her country continues to enhance understanding of Taiwan. It is possible because she can now walk through doors in Europe that are closed to President William Lai (賴清德). Tsai last week gave a speech at the Berlin Freedom Conference, where, standing in front of civil society leaders, human rights advocates and political and business figures, she highlighted Taiwan’s indispensable global role and shared its experience as a model for democratic resilience against cognitive warfare and
The diplomatic dispute between China and Japan over Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s comments in the Japanese Diet continues to escalate. In a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, China’s UN Ambassador Fu Cong (傅聰) wrote that, “if Japan dares to attempt an armed intervention in the cross-Strait situation, it would be an act of aggression.” There was no indication that Fu was aware of the irony implicit in the complaint. Until this point, Beijing had limited its remonstrations to diplomatic summonses and weaponization of economic levers, such as banning Japanese seafood imports, discouraging Chinese from traveling to Japan or issuing
The diplomatic spat between China and Japan over comments Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made on Nov. 7 continues to worsen. Beijing is angry about Takaichi’s remarks that military force used against Taiwan by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) could constitute a “survival-threatening situation” necessitating the involvement of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces. Rather than trying to reduce tensions, Beijing is looking to leverage the situation to its advantage in action and rhetoric. On Saturday last week, four armed China Coast Guard vessels sailed around the Japanese-controlled Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台), known to Japan as the Senkakus. On Friday, in what
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