There was speculation among US-based China experts this week that the White House was growing increasingly frustrated with China and could change policies and move closer to Taiwan, even agreeing to sell it new weapon systems.
However, sources close to the administration of US President Barack Obama told the Taipei Times that it was not considering a change in policy.
And while there were concerns about Beijing’s recent belligerence — particularly in the East and South China seas — Taiwan was unlikely to be involved in any US reaction.
Much of the speculation was triggered by an article written by George Washington University professor Robert Sutter, who said the Obama administration had adopted a harder public line against China’s actions and had deepened security cooperation with allies and others threatened by Chinese provocation.
Published on the Center for Strategic and International Studies Web site, the article has been the subject of much discussion by other China experts, with some claiming that Sutter was reflecting the administration’s thinking.
The article was reported in the Taipei Times yesterday.
“Careful consideration needs to be given to options that focus on the many weaknesses and vulnerabilities China faces in dealing with the US,” Sutter wrote.
Among other options, Sutter suggested the US could complicate Chinese defense plans and overall strategy toward Taiwan by allowing the sale of 66 F-16C/D jets “long sought by the Taiwan government.”
“Another option would involve a more active US posture in support of Taiwanese free expression and identity represented by the so-called Sunflower movement on the island,” he said.
One source close to the administration said no one in a policymaking position had suggested selling the F-16C/Ds to Taiwan as a response to China’s moves.
Another source said no serious consideration was being given right now to any new arms sales to Taiwan, and a senior Democratic source in the US Congress confirmed that situation.
US-Taiwan Business Council president Rupert Hammond-Chambers echoed the comments.
“I haven’t heard anything that suggests a change in course for the Obama administration regarding Taiwan,” he said in response to questions from the Taipei Times.
Hammond-Chambers said he did not see a change in the administration’s posture concerning arms sales to the nation.
“The Obama administration has made a clear decision to freeze arms sales to Taiwan in exchange for military-to-military relations with China,” he said.
“It is a false choice, but one that became manifest post the decision to upgrade Taiwan’s F-16s, but not sell new fighters,” Hammond-Chambers said.
“That decision was telegraphed to the Chinese when then-US secretary of defense [Leon] Panetta admitted China had been given a ‘heads up’ on the sale. That incidentally was a violation of the six assurances,” he said.
EUROPEAN TARGETS: The planned Munich center would support TSMC’s European customers to design high-performance, energy-efficient chips, an executive said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday said that it plans to launch a new research-and-development (R&D) center in Munich, Germany, next quarter to assist customers with chip design. TSMC Europe president Paul de Bot made the announcement during a technology symposium in Amsterdam on Tuesday, the chipmaker said. The new Munich center would be the firm’s first chip designing center in Europe, it said. The chipmaker has set up a major R&D center at its base of operations in Hsinchu and plans to create a new one in the US to provide services for major US customers,
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications yesterday said that it would redesign the written portion of the driver’s license exam to make it more rigorous. “We hope that the exam can assess drivers’ understanding of traffic rules, particularly those who take the driver’s license test for the first time. In the past, drivers only needed to cram a book of test questions to pass the written exam,” Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) told a news conference at the Taoyuan Motor Vehicle Office. “In the future, they would not be able to pass the test unless they study traffic regulations
GAINING STEAM: The scheme initially failed to gather much attention, with only 188 cards issued in its first year, but gained popularity amid the COVID-19 pandemic Applications for the Employment Gold Card have increased in the past few years, with the card having been issued to a total of 13,191 people from 101 countries since its introduction in 2018, the National Development Council (NDC) said yesterday. Those who have received the card have included celebrities, such as former NBA star Dwight Howard and Australian-South Korean cheerleader Dahye Lee, the NDC said. The four-in-one Employment Gold Card combines a work permit, resident visa, Alien Resident Certificate (ARC) and re-entry permit. It was first introduced in February 2018 through the Act Governing Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及雇用法),
‘A SURVIVAL QUESTION’: US officials have been urging the opposition KMT and TPP not to block defense spending, especially the special defense budget, an official said The US plans to ramp up weapons sales to Taiwan to a level exceeding US President Donald Trump’s first term as part of an effort to deter China as it intensifies military pressure on the nation, two US officials said on condition of anonymity. If US arms sales do accelerate, it could ease worries about the extent of Trump’s commitment to Taiwan. It would also add new friction to the tense US-China relationship. The officials said they expect US approvals for weapons sales to Taiwan over the next four years to surpass those in Trump’s first term, with one of them saying
RSS