“From the legal standpoint, Taiwan is not part of the Republic of China,” a declassified CIA report on Taiwan written in March 1949 says.
“Pending a Japanese peace treaty, the island remains occupied territory in which the US has proprietary interests,” the report continues.
The report says that communist control of the island would have “seriously unfavorable strategic implications” for the US.
It says that the native population of Taiwan would welcome release from Chinese control, but was not strong enough to stage a successful revolt.
“The Taiwanese are increasingly restive, however, because of the influx of Nationalist officials and military forces, and will become more susceptible to Communist influence,” the report says. Records show that the report, titled Probable Developments in Taiwan, was first declassified about 20 years ago and has since been gathering dust in the National Archives. It was unearthed this week by researchers who believe that it may not have been written about before.
“Assuming US inactivity, Taiwan will eventually pass under the control of the Chinese Communists,” the report says.
“In any US program to prevent this, the advantages to be gained from the strategic military viewpoint would have to be weighed against unfavorable political consequences, the extent of which would vary depending upon the selection and timing of measures for implementing the program,” the report says.
The CIA expected the early establishment of a communist-dominated government over all China and “it can be assumed that such a government would strive to establish its authority in Taiwan.”
When first written in 1949, the report was classified as “secret.”
“There is a strong sentiment in Taiwan favoring autonomy, but the situation is complicated by the conflicting interests of the native Taiwanese and Chinese Nationalist element,” the report says. “The Taiwanese bitterly resent the performance of the Nationalist administration on Taiwan since VJ [Victory over Japan]-day,” it adds.
According to the CIA, the Chinese rulers had exploited the native population “to the limit” without regard for their welfare or the preservation of the island’s resources. The report says that a Nationalist “rump government” on Taiwan could not be relied upon to prevent the communists from gaining control of the island.
“The Nationalist Army, Navy and Air Force are not only inefficient, but their loyalty and will to fight are questionable,” the report says. “In addition, such a refugee regime would be unstable because of the hostility of the local population which, in these circumstances, would be increasingly susceptible to Communist influence.”
The report concludes that the situation in Taiwan was growing more critical for the US because of Taiwanese discontent, Chinese Nationalist preparation of the island as “a last bastion” and increasing Chinese communist interest in, and capabilities toward, the island.
However, the strategic implications to US security of a takeover of Taiwan by China “would be seriously unfavorable,” it says.
ONGOING PROBE: A former Military Intelligence Bureau colonel, major general and another colonel, as well as five other people, have been questioned by prosecutors The Taipei District Court yesterday ordered that a retired colonel from the Military Intelligence Bureau (MIB) calling himself Taiwan’s “first special agent” be detained and held incommunicado as part of an ongoing investigation into espionage allegations targeting at least three former bureau officials. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office was seeking to detain former MIB colonel Chang Chao-jan (張超然) over his alleged involvement in introducing retired agents to Chinese national security authorities and passing confidential documents to China. Chang’s actions, if proven, would contravene the National Security Act (國家安全法), which carries a prison term of three to 10 years, and the National Intelligence
The US House of Representatives’ China Task Force, launched by Republicans earlier this year, yesterday proposed the China task force act, a package of 137 pieces of legislation, seven of which involve Taiwan, in the hope of getting it passed before the 117th US Congress convenes on Jan. 3. The act encompasses a wide range of issues, including combatting Beijing’s influence around the globe, establishing the US’ dominance in determining 5G network standards and means for bringing UN members to task for abusing their influence within the UN system. The seven acts involving Taiwan address concerns such as the Taiwan Assurance Act
Chinese health authorities investigating a COVID-19 outbreak have said that they discovered live coronavirus on frozen food packaging, a finding that suggests the virus can survive in cold supply chains. The Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention on Saturday said that it had found traces of live COVID-19 on the outer packaging of frozen cod in the eastern city of Qingdao, marking the first time that live coronavirus has been detected on the outside of refrigerated goods. Researchers were investigating the source of a cluster of cases linked to a hospital in Qingdao. Genetic traces had previously been found in samples of
A Chinese soldier apprehended earlier this week by the Indian Army after he strayed across a tense de facto border was on Tuesday night handed back to China, an Indian government source in New Delhi said yesterday. The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) soldier had on Monday been captured in the Demchok area of eastern Ladakh, the Indian Army said in a statement. The Chinese military also released a statement, saying that Corporal Wang Yalong was handed over early yesterday. New Delhi on Monday said that it had detained Wang after he crossed into Indian-controlled territory, while China announced that Wang had gotten
RSS