If Taiwan is to overcome its constricted international space and limited hard power to achieve its strategic goals, it must create a completely new or an alternative international space for itself that is not subject to conventional constraints on its ability to shape its external environment.
The creation of this alternative space will depend on the extent to which Taiwan can comprehensively develop its soft power.
Soft power, as a concept developed by Joseph Nye, refers to the ability of a nation to effect a desired outcome in the international arena by creating a positive external environment conducive to its interests.
It can create this environment by selecting and highlighting certain national qualities and traits that have broad appeal internationally to foster positive feelings and attitudes, goodwill toward that nation by the international community.
The more other nations are attracted to and identify with that country’s culture, political values and ideals, policies and accomplishments, the more ability it will have in getting them to support its interests without having to resort to pressure or economic inducements. Therefore, the extent of a nation’s soft power depends on its ability to shape other nations’ long-term attitudes and preferences in line with its interests.
To increase acquisition of soft power as a pressing matter of security, Taiwan must think strategically about how to maximize its soft power by first conducting a thorough review of the resources that it can utilize to shape international perceptions of the nation.
After having identified its soft power assets, it should evaluate how effective it has been in deploying those resources to create programs to improve the nation’s global standing. Only then can it formulate a comprehensive plan to make effective use of the soft power resources to enhance its ability to shape international attitudes and preferences beneficial to Taiwan.
This may require the creation of an over-arching government agency responsible for overseeing programs for enhancing the nation’s soft power.
One of the most important resources available to Taiwan in promoting its soft power is its highly successful model of economic and political development.
Taiwan’s transformation from an underdeveloped and resource-poor nation with a GDP per capita and human development levels comparable to the least developed countries into a regional economic powerhouse with a GDP per capita of US$22,648, high-caliber human resources, and a top-notch technological and scientific infrastructure can become a powerful magnet for developing nations.
Taiwan can therefore enhance its international profile by sharing its development knowledge and experience with nations aspiring for the same rapid development.
To address the pressing needs of these nations, Taiwan should greatly expand its programs, as well as develop innovative new ones, to share its development experience and knowledge with these nations through policy consultations, training and capacity building, official development assistance and overseas volunteer program.
By reaching out and sharing its development expertise with developing nations, Taiwan will be able to enhance its image as a nation working for the betterment of humanity.
Taiwan can also generate international goodwill by substantially expanding its overseas volunteer program and support of non-governmental organizations (NGO) to tackle global issues, such as infectious diseases, climate change, sustainable development, environmental degradation, disaster relief, human rights, gender equality, and food and water security.
The government should emphasize the importance of national service and provide incentives to encourage young Taiwanese to participate in the overseas program and join domestic and international NGOs.
To increase the capacity of domestic NGOs in making an effective contribution on their own and whenever possible in cooperation with international NGOs in dealing with global challenges, Taiwan should create a national program under government auspices to provide comprehensive and systematic support to NGOs in terms of financing, training, education and logistics.
By increasing the international profile of its overseas volunteer program and NGOs, Taiwan can earn the respect and admiration of people worldwide for helping to improve the quality of life of people in need.
However, the most effective means for Taiwan to win the hearts and minds of people around the world is through the export of its popular culture — Tairyu (Taiwanese Wave, 台流) — exemplified by the growing global impact of Korean popular culture (Korean Wave or Hallyu) in generating goodwill toward and self-identification with Korea and Koreans, and fostering an image of South Korea as an advanced economy, cultural power and an attractive country.
In this regard, Taiwan is well-positioned to spread its popular culture abroad, because it has a track record of having produced television dramas and movies that were popular in East Asia during the early 2000s, as well as having created a highly innovative genre of popular music — Mandopop — that is popular and influential in the Chinese-speaking world.
Spreading Taiwanese popular culture to the rest of the world will require the government to play an important role in developing the nation’s culture industry.
While the government cannot create the cultural content itself, it can build the cultural infrastructure or ecosystem to nurture creative talent and cultural content start-ups, finance the production of cultural products, establish a national public broadcasting station (modeled after the BBC, NHK and KBS) funded by the government and license fees to create quality programming, and encourage consolidation of private entertainment and media companies to take advantage of economies of scale, as well as public-private partnerships, to promote Taiwanese popular culture internationally.
The private entertainment and media content companies should also establish partnerships with their foreign counterparts to coproduce cultural content that will appeal to a global audience.
Just as Hallyu has led to wider interest in South Korea, the global spread of Taiwanese popular culture will generate greater interest in Taiwanese history, culture, society, language and cuisine that will, in turn, encourage foreigners to travel, study and work in Taiwan.
If Taiwan could be as successful as South Korea in launching its own version of Hallyu, the growing international recognition and goodwill toward Taiwan and the enhancement of its image in the world would lead to a proportional increase in its soft power.
The global promotion of Taiwanese popular culture abroad is by far the most effective resource in creating a favorable environment for Taiwan to pursue its interests.
As a case in point, more young people across the world know about the existence of Taiwan because of the phenomenal popularity of the multinational nine-member Korean-pop (K-pop) female group Twice. This is because the group’s most popular member among international fans is from Taiwan, Tzuyu (Chou Tzu-yu, 周子瑜).
Six music videos featuring Twice, since its debut in 2015, have gone viral and surpassed 100 million views on YouTube. One of the first three has surpassed 300 million views and the other two have surpassed 200 million views. Moreover, Twice was the first K-pop girl group to top both Billboard’s World Albums Chart and the World Digital Song Sales chart.
One can only imagine how much international interest and attraction that would have been generated toward Taiwan if Twice had been an indigenous Taiwanese female group.
To its credit, President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) government has recognized the potential of Taiwan’s cultural content in increasing its soft power.
In February last year, Tsai announced that the government would vigorously provide funding to develop the video/movie industry, because it is one of the most important industries in showcasing Taiwanese lifestyle, values and culture.
The government would create a department to be in charge of media investment and consider the creation of an independent agency to promote cultural content, she said.
In addition, the government has proposed legislation to consolidate Taiwan’s major public media to better serve the public and connect Taiwan to the rest of the world.
The incorporation of major public media into a single entity can also serve as an effective media platform for creating and spreading Taiwanese popular culture. For a stable source of funding, the government could consider imposing a mandatory license fee on all households.
Instead of trying to overcome the constraints of its international space and hard power through conventional means, it will be far more advantageous for Taiwan to increase its capacity for wielding soft power.
The conventional constraints on power do not apply to soft power; it is only limited by the imagination, creativity, determination and the resources that Taiwan can bring to bear on expanding its soft power.
Moreover, acquisition of this power will be more cost-effective and achieve a greater return on investment by getting other people to identify with Taiwan’s interests through the power of attraction.
The government must therefore make the acquisition of soft power an important national priority and promote a whole-of-government, as well as whole-of-society, approach to enhancing Taiwan’s international profile.
Steven Kim is a residency fellow at the Asia Cultural Center in Gwangju, South Korea.
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