On Feb. 14, when Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping (習近平) visited the White House, US President Barack Obama offered up Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) as a sacrificial lamb to China. Both Xi and Obama had their own personal interpreters and China’s state-run Xinhua news agency quoted Obama as saying that the US “rejects” any form of Taiwanese independence. Beijing has constantly demanded that the US change its rhetoric from “not supporting Taiwanese independence” to “opposing Taiwanese independence.” While the US government has not followed Beijing’s wishes, Obama’s comments do present the DPP with new challenges.
Before the US makes any clear announcement that it opposes Taiwanese independence, China would be thrilled to see any form of attack on the idea. Obama saying the US “rejects” any form of Taiwanese independence sends the message to Taiwan that the US will reject any intention, comment or idea that indicates Taiwan is moving toward independence.
If Xi had visited the US before Taiwan’s presidential election, Obama’s remarks would have influenced the elections in general and the DPP in particular.
While US officials have said that Taiwan’s future is for 23 million Taiwanese to decide, President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration, just like the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), opposes Taiwanese independence. Obama’s remarks are deeply linked to the choice of political parties here in Taiwan, because the comment implies that the US does not accept or would not be happy to see a DPP government.
One month before the presidential election, Obama sent USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah and US Deputy Secretary of Energy Daniel Poneman to visit Taiwan. These visits, coupled with the announcement of plans for visa-free status for Taiwanese visiting the US, were aimed at winning support for candidates from the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT). The visits and the visa waiver initiative are all in line with the interests of Taiwanese.
However, leaving things that should have been done long ago until just before an election implies that there were ulterior motives, which was, of course, to try and influence the way in which Taiwanese voted.
Obama’s “rejection” of Taiwanese independence is similar to his comments when he visited Beijing in November 2009 and said the US respects China’s key interests. This is because such rhetoric gives Beijing yet another piece of rope to control the US with.
If cross-strait relations are really as peaceful as some people claim, why has Xi remained so focused on the issue? If relations between the US and Taiwan are the best they have ever been, as some keep saying, why are more and more people in the US calling for the US to stop supporting Taiwan?
If the DPP wishes to be in power, it not only has to contend with the KMT and the CCP, it also has to deal with the “soft” opposition of the US.
The DPP and KMT are in agreement when it comes to “no unification” and “no war.” If both parties were to come together and further consolidate this “consensus,” Beijing would have a tough time executing its strategy of peaceful unification.
Support for the DPP is weak in the northern and central areas of Taiwan and it needs to do much more to get voters to see through China’s economic bribery and to make them more willing to hold on to their right to choose the future of Taiwan.
Lin Cheng-yi is a research fellow at Academia Sinica’s Institute of European and American Studies.
Translated by Drew Cameron
Could Asia be on the verge of a new wave of nuclear proliferation? A look back at the early history of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which recently celebrated its 75th anniversary, illuminates some reasons for concern in the Indo-Pacific today. US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin recently described NATO as “the most powerful and successful alliance in history,” but the organization’s early years were not without challenges. At its inception, the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty marked a sea change in American strategic thinking. The United States had been intent on withdrawing from Europe in the years following
The issue of China’s overcapacity has drawn greater global attention recently, with US Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen urging Beijing to address its excess production in key industries during her visit to China last week. Meanwhile in Brussels, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen last week said that Europe must have a tough talk with China on its perceived overcapacity and unfair trade practices. The remarks by Yellen and Von der Leyen come as China’s economy is undergoing a painful transition. Beijing is trying to steer the world’s second-largest economy out of a COVID-19 slump, the property crisis and
The past few months have seen tremendous strides in India’s journey to develop a vibrant semiconductor and electronics ecosystem. The nation’s established prowess in information technology (IT) has earned it much-needed revenue and prestige across the globe. Now, through the convergence of engineering talent, supportive government policies, an expanding market and technologically adaptive entrepreneurship, India is striving to become part of global electronics and semiconductor supply chains. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Vision of “Make in India” and “Design in India” has been the guiding force behind the government’s incentive schemes that span skilling, design, fabrication, assembly, testing and packaging, and
As former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) wrapped up his visit to the People’s Republic of China, he received his share of attention. Certainly, the trip must be seen within the full context of Ma’s life, that is, his eight-year presidency, the Sunflower movement and his failed Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement, as well as his eight years as Taipei mayor with its posturing, accusations of money laundering, and ups and downs. Through all that, basic questions stand out: “What drives Ma? What is his end game?” Having observed and commented on Ma for decades, it is all ironically reminiscent of former US president Harry