With just a year left until he leaves office, President Chen Shui-bian (
Wu's predecessors, Chen Chien-jen (
Since he became president, Chen has sent a number of DPP members to learn the diplomatic ropes as deputy representatives to the US, but has demonstrated his respect for the professionalism required by the job by retaining more qualified Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) members in the top post. However, to train its own members in diplomacy and North American affairs, the DPP has finally sent one of its own. If it hadn't, it would have squandered an opportunity to make its mark on US-Taiwan relations.
When problems arose between Taiwan and the US, there was some mutual distrust between Taipei and the representative office in Washington due to differing political backgrounds. Both Taipei and Washington wondered if their messages were getting through, or whether they were being distorted through the prism of domestic politics. As a result, the Presidential Office often bypassed regular diplomatic channels to contact the Bush administration, leaving the official representative office in charge of administrative affairs only. But as Wu has Chen's trust, he should be able to put an end to the confusion and redundancies.
Although Taiwan-US relations are fundamentally diplomatic affairs, Washington has always been a main battleground during exchanges between China and Taiwan. Since Beijing began enlisting the US' help in restraining Taiwan from changing the "status quo," Washington has become the most direct and effective shortcut for each to exert pressure on the other.
This has been especially true since former US deputy secretary of state Robert Zoellick began encouraging China to become a "responsible stakeholder." For example, during a visit to the US in 2005, Chinese President Hu Jintao (
Chen's appointment of a seasoned veteran in cross-strait affairs to represent Taiwan in Washington clearly demonstrates his view that cross-strait relations are an extension of Taiwan-US relations. In doing so, he has established a strategic triangle between the three countries.
Wu's appointment as Taiwan's most crucial diplomatic officer will be a heavy responsibility and test of his ability. As the first DPP representative to the US and one of Chen's most trusted allies, he will not only be the nation's envoy in Washington, but also a channel of communication and the architect of mutual trust between Taiwan and the US. He will also need to use the US' political leverage to maintain balance among the three players in the Taiwan Strait.
As strategic tensions escalate across the vast Indo-Pacific region, Taiwan has emerged as more than a potential flashpoint. It is the fulcrum upon which the credibility of the evolving American-led strategy of integrated deterrence now rests. How the US and regional powers like Japan respond to Taiwan’s defense, and how credible the deterrent against Chinese aggression proves to be, will profoundly shape the Indo-Pacific security architecture for years to come. A successful defense of Taiwan through strengthened deterrence in the Indo-Pacific would enhance the credibility of the US-led alliance system and underpin America’s global preeminence, while a failure of integrated deterrence would
The Executive Yuan recently revised a page of its Web site on ethnic groups in Taiwan, replacing the term “Han” (漢族) with “the rest of the population.” The page, which was updated on March 24, describes the composition of Taiwan’s registered households as indigenous (2.5 percent), foreign origin (1.2 percent) and the rest of the population (96.2 percent). The change was picked up by a social media user and amplified by local media, sparking heated discussion over the weekend. The pan-blue and pro-China camp called it a politically motivated desinicization attempt to obscure the Han Chinese ethnicity of most Taiwanese.
On Wednesday last week, the Rossiyskaya Gazeta published an article by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) asserting the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) territorial claim over Taiwan effective 1945, predicated upon instruments such as the 1943 Cairo Declaration and the 1945 Potsdam Proclamation. The article further contended that this de jure and de facto status was subsequently reaffirmed by UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 of 1971. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs promptly issued a statement categorically repudiating these assertions. In addition to the reasons put forward by the ministry, I believe that China’s assertions are open to questions in international
The Legislative Yuan passed an amendment on Friday last week to add four national holidays and make Workers’ Day a national holiday for all sectors — a move referred to as “four plus one.” The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), who used their combined legislative majority to push the bill through its third reading, claim the holidays were chosen based on their inherent significance and social relevance. However, in passing the amendment, they have stuck to the traditional mindset of taking a holiday just for the sake of it, failing to make good use of
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